The Broken Dove
by xXDemonic AngelXx
Summary: Strong, or weak, is what Tyler's friends believe verses his father. His home life is tearing his school life apart, Reid trying desperately to help his falling friend. But the older man has a strong grip in Tyler's mental state, Tyler balancing on the cliff of insanity and depression, wondering how much he can handle before he falls.
1. Prison Sex

****Disclaimer:: Careful now, this story is gonna be pretty brutal. Mentions of...feck. Abuse, Alcohol, Molestation, stuff of that nature. Please, do enjoy, but if you have little virgin eyes, or don't think you can handle this type of story, move on. I've made people cry before with my writings. But, if you can handle this (which i dont even think is really all that terrible) enjoy!

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**Chapter 1**

He was giggling like mad, simply leaning against the door frame. "Baby…" he called out softly. "Baby Boy, don't be afraid." He leaned forward and took a clumsy step, almost falling over if it weren't for the door frame. Gathering his drunken wits, he came for the tense boy, wrapping his hands around the thin throat. Tyler let out a gargled scream, but a hand quickly covered his mouth. He drew a wicked grin across his face mumbling, "Why make sound little one? Why make people worry?" A giggle escaped his mouth. "Come on, Baby Boy, you know you want it. I've seen the way you look at everyone. But, you're going to be mine tonight. And you're not going to make a sound."

Tyler was pressed against his satin comforter, the hard cock pressing painfully into his leg. Tyler shook his head and grabbed his powers, flinging them at the bastard on top of him. The person gasped in sharply before smacking Tyler with a fist of their own power. "No!" Tyler yelled, struggling to zap the bigger man with any bit of strength he could muster.

"Silence!" The voice commanded, slamming Tyler's cheek with another blast of power. "You will remain as such until I say further!"

Tyler gave a small whimper as a blast of pain rolled through his mind, causing sleep to make its way over his eyes. "My apologies...sir," he mumbled, his eyes closing more and more.

Silence. Tyler soaked in the lack of noise, attempting to pass out before any of the real damage began. He felt at peace, his body out of his grasp, attached to nothing that mattered. He felt the familiar weight begin pressing against his chest and then spread out, a warm blanket trying to accept his company. Before he could truly embrace the darkness though, he heard the giggle once more, beginning at the shoulders, working into a full noise. "You're...you're too cute." The giggle turned into laughter, his father pressing his forehead firmly against Tyler's chest. "Baby Boy... Please don't piss me off tonight. I'd really hate to bruise such a beautiful face."

Tyler couldn't move as he felt the man tense up. Tyler remained motionless, which he knew was agitating the much older adult. "K..." he muttered, head rolling to the side, eyes shutting.

There was another moment of silence, but Tyler knew how the night would close. He would remain lying here, unmoving, not speaking, then his father would become frustrated as all sweet words came to an end, and the true horror would come out. Tyler counted the seconds, finally hearing, "Ty-Ty? Did you hear me?" Tyler remained still, attempting to pass out. "Ty-Ty? I, I don't want to hurt you, but if you are going to disrespect my orders... I will have no reason to hold back. Tyler? Say something!"

_Kill me now... _He father growled and angrily sat up, punching Tyler in the stomach, working his way all over. Tyler felt the first three severe hits before his body accepted the pain and allowed his mind to disappear. He didn't care what his father did to him, just as long as he didn't wake up in the middle of it.

When Tyler woke next, he was sore and took his time coming fully awake. He felt disoriented and at first had a hard time telling that he was still in his own bed. He distinctly felt that Reid had come and saved him in the middle of a beating, but he didn't remember his usual wake up on the way to Reid's house. Reid would have him lying across the back of the seats of the Wrangler or Hummer, a blanket or jacket over him. Soft rock would be playing in the background, street lights constantly flashing overhead. _"How are you feeling?"_

Without fail every time, Reid would ask that right as Tyler would wake up. And, without fail every time, Tyler would groan and pass back out until the next morning. This time, as Tyler began to sit up, he opened his eyes and his vision spun, causing him to collapse back onto his bed. Lying on his side he was trying to control his breathing and his mind, feeling like he was on a rampaging roller coaster. _I have to move. I have to get up before he comes back. _

Tyler attempted once more to sit up, and dealt with his swaying vision and sore body. He slowly walked over to his closet and made it to his bathroom, sitting down on the side of his tub and trying to figure out how he was going to get out of this one.

~~/~~

"Baby Boy! How's it goin?"

Tyler held his phone to his ear as he laid back down on his bed carefully, trying to enjoy how much looser his muscles were after his shower. "Hey Reid. What're you up to?"

"Halo with Mack. Probably Nikki's later for pool. Wanna join?"

"Yeah, I do actually." Tyler finished up the conversation, preparing himself to drive. He still got the spins occasionally, but they weren't near as bad as they were earlier. _And if Reid sees that I'm doing worse than he thinks, he'll let me stay at his place for the night. _When he was ready he left for his friend Mack's house, ignoring his father's ranting at him as he left for his hummer.

Tyler was impressed with himself for the majority of the afternoon and night. He did fine at Mack's house, was able to control one round of the spins while he was driving to Nikki's, and held up his part of the pool talent next to his two friends. Team after team was crushed, the three trading out and enjoying the winning streak. Tyler could feel the slight doses of power that Reid used on certain shots, but it wasn't anything worth lecturing about. "How about a beer, eh guys?" Mack said, putting his arms over Reid's and Tyler's shoulders.

Reid looked at him, a sly grin on his face. "We'll meet you over by the juke box. Nikki shouldn't see us over there."

Tyler walked over to a table and sat down, his stomach and sides beginning to burn. "You're not holding up too well, are you?" Tyler heard Reid ask, and only had to shake his head in response. "We'll drink this beer and head out. You'll be good to drive, right?"

Tyler nodded and watched their friend bring them their beers, soon toasting to excellent games of pool and a decent Saturday night. Tyler choked down his beer as quickly as possible, wanting a calm sleep. When they left, Tyler continued to hold the image that he was fine when he dropped Mack off, seeing the broken down monster sitting in his driveway. The custom built Mitsubishi Eclipse had taken a turn for the worse after he had last raced it, cops getting involved and causing a lot of damage and bills.

On his way back to Reid's house, his vision began spinning again, Tyler trying to remain in a straight line. He wanted to close his eyes and let it pass, but he began to panic when the cars passing had their lights smearing into his vision, appearing like they were coming at him from all directions. "Tyler!" he vaguely heard, barely aware of Reid taking the wheel as he closed his eyes and held back the urge to throw up, the lights imprinted on his mind.

"Come on Baby Boy, pull yourself together."

_Baby Boy..._ Tyler pulled his eyes open and willed himself to take control again. He placed his hand next to Reid's and focused again on the road, the lights staying on the proper half. "Sorry," Tyler muttered, feeling lightheaded.

"If it wasn't more dangerous for you to pull over right now, you know I'd make you. But hold on. You're going to bed as soon as we reach my house."

Tyler remained motionless, holding himself together by a thin line. When he pulled into Reid's driveway, he let out a sigh and rested his head on his steering wheel. He heard Reid get out and knew the older boy was going to help him. He was frustrated that he couldn't get out of his own vehicle, and the feeling didn't settle when Reid opened his door, placed his arm around Tyler's back, and helped him out of the car and up to his room.

"Come on Tyler, almost there." Reid nudged his door open, half dragging Tyler to the futon that he normally slept on. Tyler's vision was slipping, the futon being the only thing he could really see. "Okay Tyler, lay down," Reid said as he helped Tyler, Tyler unable to move much of his body anymore.

_My body's so heavy. Fuck. _"Thanks, man," Tyler mumbled, and heard Reid gasp.

"Tyler, what the fuck?" He felt Reid lift his shirt off and let out his own pained gasp, images of his father flashing through his head. Reid grabbed Tyler's shoulder tightly, Tyler opening his eyes and staring into the hurting blue ones. "Why the fuck didn't you call me?"

"I, I..."

"Fuck dude. This is bad. I'll see what I can do, but... Just, just go to sleep."

Tyler complied, Reid's cool hands fading from his thoughts, as well as the images of his father. When he was next aware of things, he wasn't sure what was going on. He felt trapped, something pressing tight against his body. He gasped, attempting to open his eyes, but it was too dark. He became dizzy, struggling to fight off whatever was around him. "Reid, Reid!" He gasped, his mind battling between his reality and dreams. He soon felt a release around his chest, and took in a deep breath, shuddering.

"You okay?"

Tyler looked up at the older figure, Reid's pale skin giving a soft glow from the moon's light. He had a shirt off, his blonde hair ruffled, the shadows unable to fully hide the worried expression that covered his face. Tyler broke eye contact and glanced at the blanket that had been wrapped around him. "I'm at your place, right?" He cringed at how weak and pathetic his voice sounded.

"Yeah," Reid replied in a softer voice. "You're safe here. You know that."

Tyler nodded, Reid unfolding the blanket and placing it over Tyler. It took Tyler only a few more seconds to drift off, but he was launched back into the dream he had been having.

"_Baby Boy! You've returned! I knew you would."_

Tyler looked around in panic, seeing his father walking up to him, arms wide with a grin on his face. Tyler tried to turn but it felt like he was pushing through sand as he attempted to run away. _"Bastard!" _Tyler called back, using as much strength as he could to push against the pressure around him.

"_You're not running off again, boy. I'm not through with you yet, and you're still coherent. I am going to enjoy tonight!" _

Tyler looked up and saw his father in front of him, the pressure disappearing. Tyler fell forward into his father's chest, who instantly held a tight grip around him. Tyler attempted to squirm away once more, but he was trapped again. _"Why do you run from me? Why can't I simply hold you here, against me, and just feel your living body? Am I not allowed to enjoy what's mine? You are my flesh and blood, boy. One day, you too will repeat this process on your son, and it will carry on. We will be the strongest family in the Covenant. Just imagine, Tyler!"_

Tyler slowly stopped resisting; the imagery of what his future could turn out like consumed his emotions and all thought. He imagined his father being treated the same, if not worse, from his father before him. The pain he must go through to do the same to Tyler, this being the only way he knew to raise his child. And there was nothing Tyler could do. His mother stood on the sidelines, not suggesting a word on how to raise Tyler. Her black hair always remained straight and layered, her olive skin shimmering wherever she stood in the light.

"_I can't be anything like you. I'm not even going to make it until I have a child."_

His father's fingers dug deeply into the crest of his shoulders, causing Tyler to cry out in short pain. _"What do you mean, Ty-Ty? Of course you're going to have a son, and you know that you're going to raise him precisely how you were raised. You're not going to allow your wife to raise him, because that would be against tradition, now wouldn't it?"_

Tyler gasped and attempted to cringe away from his father's fingers, but his hug was too tight. _"Father!" _

A deep chuckle escaped his father's throat. _"That's what you're going to be begging all night long, boy."_

Tyler fell to his knees, but his father soon lifted him back up, the pressure in Tyler's shoulder's beginning to warm as well. Without warning, his father shot a beam of heat down through Tyler's body, causing him to let out a brief yell, slightly muffled by his father's clothes. His father released him, took a step back, and then gave him a small smile as he pointed his fingers at Tyler. Tyler dodged out of the way, feeling only a spark of pain in his ankle as he was hit by one of the shots of heat, and slid on his side for a few feet. He looked up and saw his father shoot another ray at him, Tyler rolling over and barely missing it.

He quickly stood up and jumped to the side, escaping another shot, and continued jumping and running around the small room, nothing able to be used as a cover. _"Oh, come on Baby Boy! You're not making this fun at all. I would really appreciate it if I could hear your voice a little bit more. I do enjoy the sound of your agony." _

Tyler sacrificed his chance for breath as he dodged one more ray of the power, his muscles and lungs crying for air. His vision and body faltered as he landed, Tyler taking in a deep breath, and he felt the stab more than saw it coming for him. He lost his ability to breathe, his body in shock as the five heat waves passed through him, stinging and burning various pieces of skin, muscle, nerve, tendon, and bone. He laid on the ground gasping and struggling for breath, attempting to not hyperventilate as his body refused to listen to any commands. He heard the footsteps of his father come closer, the giggle once more renewing.

"_Oh Baby Boy... Why won't you play with me anymore? I only was trying to have some fun... I think we could be best of friends if you allowed me. Come on, man, what do you say?"_

Tyler looked into the eyes that were so similar to his own, the sad, demented face with the lopsided grin adding to the madness that coated his father like an armor. The tips of his fingers glowed with a faint red, his power wanting to be released onto Tyler. _"Fuck off."_

As expected, his father shot the power into Tyler, but he did it in a much calmer manner instead of his normal screaming and hollering. _"I'm above what you expect, boy. I'd ask you to do your worst to me right now, but you seem pretty inapt for such a simple request." _His father shot him once again with the power, Tyler releasing his agonized cries. _"I suppose it's a good thing I can do this all night long."_

Tyler shook as he was hit again, all five beams searing different parts of his body. His body was shaking uncontrollably, and his muscles didn't want to coordinate with his mind as well as they normally did. He managed to roll onto his side and begin pushing himself up, each time his father shooting a blast at him giving Tyler more motivation to stand up. _"That 'a boy. I knew you were strong enough to stand up. But I don't approve. I never told you to stand, did I?"_

The kick to Tyler's stomach was faster than he expected, causing him to collapse onto his side, leaving him open to receive an even stronger kick to his stomach, followed by another. He gasped and began coughing, his hands speckled with red drops. Another kick caused him to throw up, his father laughing at his miserable behavior.

Gasping between breaths after heaving his dry stomach, he managed to ask, _"There's nothing I can do to please you, father?"_

Tyler glanced up, seeing a dark smirk crossing his father's face. He crouched down, the grin spreading the more he spoke. _"Are you asking for a way to please me, Tyler James Simms? Are those the words that came out of your mouth?"_

Tyler nodded, his father pressing his palm against Tyler's forehead, the power sweeping across Tyler's body, singeing all of his nerves along his spine. He yelled, attempting to move away, but the power held him still. His father held the palm there far longer than seemed necessary, but he wasn't about to let Tyler off of the hook. _"First you are talking to me with disrespect; acting like the big tough guy you think you are, like that Reid Garwin. Then you fold and ask for a way to please me. This is the true side of you, isn't it Tyler? You have no guts of your own; you enjoy hiding behind your body guards."_

He released his hold, Tyler gasping and trying to control his shaking body. His muscles would constrict and then relax, only to constrict again, his entire body off beat and slowly becoming numb. Tyler looked up at his father, the power glowing deep red around his hands. He couldn't say anything though. A wind brushed over the back of Tyler and around his father, fading his figure as sand in the wind. _"I hate you!" _Tyler screamed, the winds carrying his words. _"I will never be like you!"_

The giggling remained as the area turned dark, Tyler slipping into the abyss of his sleep.

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Well hello there! Hope you enjoyed this first chapter. So, because i am obsessed with Tool, a lot of these chapters are going to be based off of their song titles. This is the only chapter i believe that actually goes back to the song pretty well. Look up the lyrics, and if you want, even the song meaning. Idk. It's pretty amusing. But, this story is Tyler based, and if anyone has read my story Darkness, I share the abuse from Reid's past with this story as well, but that's about the only similarity i think. Anywho... I hope you all will stay tuned for the next chapter, and let me know what you think. Until next time!


	2. Breathe

**Chapter 2**

Tyler became settled into the dorms again quickly, glad thanksgiving break was over. Reid kept a careful eye on him, but Tyler still managed to cover how distressed he really was. The nightmare from Reid's house kept him on his toes, allowing the teen to only receive a few hours of sleep a night. Tyler used the extra awake time to study and once again practice forgetting about his home life. Reid attempted to keep up with Tyler's dedication to school, but Tyler knew once his friend was asleep, he wasn't about to wake for anything...excluding Tyler's cries at night.

As Reid lay asleep in the bed adjacent to Tyler's, his thoughts drifted off towards Caleb and Pogue. The two hadn't said much to Tyler or Reid, both in the dark about Tyler's home life. Caleb was smitten with Sarah, and Pogue was doing whatever he could to keep his relationship with Kate. They've only had one meeting since Chase disappeared, and Tyler was quite all right with that, and he knew Reid was as well. Caleb had given them his gratitude for attempting to watch Sarah the night of his birthday, but his eyes had been cold. Reid wanted to punch him, tell him that there was nothing they could do, but Pogue and Tyler held him back, Pogue keeping out of it as much as possible since he had been in the hospital.

_There's no more love in our group. We've all developed our personalities, and we don't agree on anything anymore. We used to be able to bypass all the differences, but that was when nothing outside of our group mattered. When Reid and Caleb fought, they would be laughing it off ten minutes later. Now, they simply bite at each others necks and see how far they can go to get the other to hit them. It can take up to days to brush off the worst of the comments. Caleb and Pogue put all of their care into their girlfriends, leaving none for me and Reid. Where Reid can be okay with it, this does bother me, over all..._

Tyler rolled over onto his stomach, pressing his face into his pillow. He breathed along with Reid, feeling his body give in to the whims of sleep, his mind too panicked to follow suit. He gave in to his body's needs though, and simply laid there, able to keep his mind silent and body still. It was more relaxing than he imagined, and could feel when his mind slipped away into the sleep it wanted as well.

"...Serious? You don't give a damn about him, do you?"

Tyler slowly comprehended Reid's voice, causing him to attempt to move. "That's not true, Reid. I just think there are more important things than worrying about Tyler oversleeping."

Tyler didn't hear anything for a few seconds, but caught the quick stutter in Reid's voice. "G-get the f-fuck out of my room."

The door slammed shut and a few seconds later he heard Reid punch the wall. Tyler forced his body to move, blinking rapidly in the morning light as he slowly pushed himself up and looked over at Reid. He had his forearm against the wall, resting his head against his fist. "You don't need to panic so much, Reid."

Reid jumped and turned to Tyler, a mix of emotions on his face. "You're awake now."

Tyler swung his legs over the side of the bed, trying to shove the sleep from his mind. "How late are we?"

"First hour starts in ten minutes. Do you need help?"

"No, I got it."

Tyler stood up and dressed as quickly as he could, Reid grabbing his school things. Not even caring to look in the mirror he grabbed some gum and followed Reid out the door, taking his backpack. "Why'd you go and get Pogue?"

Reid was silent as they went down the stairs, Tyler knowing that he'd talk sometime. When they were out of the dorms, he finally responded with, "Because you weren't waking up. I noticed when you fell asleep last night." Tyler glanced at him, disbelieving his words. "It's true. You slowed your breaths to match mine, and then when you actually fell asleep, your breathing was a lot slower. But this morning, you didn't respond to anything that I was doing. I got Pogue, but I interrupted him and Kate having a morning quickie."

Tyler rolled his eyes, saying, "So naturally Pogue was pissed and you were mad in result of that?"

"Basically."

They walked quickly across the campus, coming up to their building. Tyler could feel that his face was flushed, but at least the morning air and brisk walk was helping wake him up. "Sorry I worried you. I don't know why I was that dead asleep."

They walked into their building, heading down one of the closer hallways. "Don't sweat it. I know you've been getting three or four hours of sleep a night, and you needed to make up for it."

Tyler pulled open the classroom door, the two taking their seats in the third row, thrilled they were somehow only five minutes late. After they were situated with a few glares from the teacher, Reid slid a note over to Tyler, Tyler reading: _We're talking after school. You're not getting out of it, either. _Tyler sighed, writing _Ok _underneath it.

~~/~~

"What's going on, Tyler? Why aren't you sleeping?"

Tyler dipped his head into his hands, unable to look at the blonde sitting on the bed across from him. He hated Reid's straight forward antics. He had been silent the entire walk back from school, and even all the way up into the dorms, where they set their stuff down and changed. Now though, he was impatient, and wanted answers.

"I've told you before, Reid, I have nightmares."

"Are they occurring as often as they have in the past?"

"No..."

"Good, that's good then..."

_Don't make it sound like that then, Reid. It just means I'm succumbing to his teachings, becoming more like him. Nightmares are good, Reid. As horrible as that may be, I'm relieved by my nightmares... _

"What's wrong? Tyler? Why are you shaking your head?"

Tyler looked up into Reid's worried eyes, speaking his thoughts. "The nightmares are my safety blanket, Reid. They let me know I'm not becoming like him. The fewer nightmares I have, the more I..."

Reid jumped up, his fist clenched, locked back and ready to hit something. "Tyler! Don't say that! Never again do I want to hear those words! Never! You will not become like your father, ever. He's just a symbol of power that needs to be brought down. I've dealt with him, and I've dealt with you. You are nothing like him."

Tyler only stared at his hands. "Even when I've attacked you in a fit of a nightmare? Even when I've left marks and bruises on you for coming too close to me? You don't see the same insanity my father and I share?"

Reid paced a little before sitting on the bed, pointing a finger sharply at Tyler. "Once again, no. I hold strong behind my beliefs in taking care of you, because no one did that for me, excluding you. You don't share any of the insanity that your father has. You are Tyler Simms, genius of government and pottery, master of backstroke." A grin cracked on his face. "Come on dude, get out of these dark thoughts. It's not going to help you sleep any easier unless you lighten up."

Tyler stared at his friend, knowing he had lost the fight, and Reid was right once again. Tyler gave a small smile, Reid's grin growing. "I know. Sorry. I'll do better."

"Don't apologize for anything." Reid stood up and grabbed their backpacks so they could begin homework. "It's simply my turn to repay the favor."

Towards the end of the night, Reid opened his phone and Tyler could hear the smirk in his voice when he asked, "Wanna hang out with Mack tonight?"

Tyler looked over his notes and planner, scheduling out his studying and tests. "Ah...sure. I believe I can afford to."

"Tyler, stop. Take a breath, and relax. We're done for the night, and now we can celebrate. Are you okay with driving over there?"

Tyler smirked. "I'd like to see him try to drive his eclipse over here."

"True that, but if you can't drive home tonight, I want you to tell me. I don't want any close calls like last week, and trust me, I'm not about to tell Mack, Caleb, or Pogue how you almost drove us off the road."

Tyler grinned. "Good, because I'd hate to try to pin it on a more suspecting victim such as yourself, Reid."

Tyler held a small smile on his face, as strange as it felt, and walked with Reid out to his hummer after they put their textbooks and notes away. They arrived to Mack's in a shorter time than normal, Mack coming out and greeting them with a bottle of Jack in his hand.

"Dude, it's barely nine," Reid said, his own sly grin forming.

"So? C'mon! It's only Thursday. Get fuckin' trashed!"

Mack stumbled over to the two of them, Tyler and Reid chuckling as they caught their friend, Tyler looking at the bottle in his hand. _He's already drank almost half of that bottle...I wonder how much longer he'll last._

"Let's head in, then," Reid said, an eager grin crossing his face, Tyler helping him carry Mack into the gorgeous house.

A few hours later, Tyler was sitting on a chair watching Reid and Mack attempt to play Foosball in their drunken state of mind. Generally, with as drunk as he was, he would be over next to them, laughing at their stupid mistakes. He could tell that he was becoming tired, and didn't know if he should fight it and let Reid continue having fun, or say that it was probably time to head out.

_If you can't drive home tonight, I want you to tell me._

Tyler sighed, standing up. _I need to be better about this. I can't let Reid down. _As Tyler came up to the intense match, Mack threw his arms in the air with an enthusiastic yell, Reid slamming his hand on the table and turning around in disgust. "Yo, Reid. Wanna head out?"

Reid lost his balance as he turned towards Tyler, a stupid grin on his face. "You can drive?"

Tyler gave Reid what he hoped was a believable grin. "Yeah, we'll be fine."

Soon they were heading out, Tyler feeling more uneasy about the drive than he normally did. Reid laid his seat back as far as he could, a small grin still on his face. "If I take a nap, can I trust you to not kill us?"

"Don't pass out on me until we get home." Tyler kept his power on a minimum, using it to help keep his vision straight.

Tyler saw Reid sit up a little straighter, looking out to the road."Can you drive?"

"Yeah..." Tyler looked out the road, not even knowing why he cared if Reid was awake or not. Generally his friend passed out and that was it until they reached the dorms, both helping each other into the building and into their rooms, generally both passing out as soon they hit their covers.

"Then what's up?" Reid put his seat back to where it was before, looking from Tyler to the road, and back to Tyler.

Tyler didn't reply right away, unsure about what was going on in his head. There was the usual thickness from the alcohol that made it hard for him to think or speak, but there was something more than that. He couldn't tell if it was something with his powers, from when he almost drove them off the road, or how much sleepier he felt this time around then he normally did. "I don't know," was all he could think of to say.

"Will you be better when we get to the dorms?"

Sleepiness slowly rolled over Tyler's mind, causing him to lose some of his focus on the road. He brought his power out a little more, helping steady his vision once again. "I believe so..." he replied, knowing he only had to survive a short distance.

"We're almost back at the dorms, at least. Like, ten more minutes?"

Tyler nodded, his focus beginning to slip on the road. His vision slid, creating double images, soon becoming triple images as he fought his vision to perfect itself out again. "You...can't drive at all, can you?"

It was Reid's turn to become silent and simply stare at the road. He could feel little bits of Reid's power, and wondered how strongly he could feel Tyler's own power. If he could, could he tell that Tyler was having a more difficult time than normal? Tyler had to refocus on the road, letting out a deep breath as his vision began shaking. "I think I can get us home."

Tyler let out another breath, the fog over his mind only becoming thicker. "Are you positive?"

"Yeah, I believe so. I can at least do better than you are doing right now."

Tyler nodded and pulled over, glad no one was on the road at one in the morning. Tyler slowly got out of his seat, Reid getting out and when he passed Tyler, he grabbed onto his shoulder and looked into his eyes. "You know what I said earlier?"

Tyler looked at Reid, cautiously answering, "Yeah...?"

"Thanks for sticking to it."

Realization dawned on Tyler what Reid was talking about, a grin breaking out on his face, Reid soon copying. "As long as you can get us home, that's all that matters. I'm sorry I can't do it."

"Just get in the hummer." Tyler listened, and jumped back into his hummer, not liking how he was sitting in the passenger seat. Yes, Reid was the much better driver than Tyler, but he at least respected Tyler's wishes during normal driving times. In special cases, like the party at the beginning of the semester, Reid was allowed to drive Tyler's hummer to escape certain situations. Sitting in the passenger seat though, power put away, he realized how drunk he was and simply watched the road in a stupor, unable to move much.

It felt as if it had been hours since they left Mack's house, even though the short drive normally was nothing. Reid parked, Tyler glancing over at him. "You're pretty fucked up, aren't you Baby Boy?" Reid asked, smiling.

"Don't call me that," Tyler responded, getting out of the hummer.

Reid gave a short laugh. "Come on, I've always called you that. Your birthday _is_ four months after the rest of ours."

Tyler focused on the sidewalk, knowing the stairs were coming up somewhere in front of him. "Just don't call me that right now."

"Tyler! Come on, why not?" Reid swung his arm around Tyler's shoulders, throwing off both of their balance. Tyler regained his composure and silently walked up the stairs into the dorm, and towards their room. When they reached their room, Reid went to his half of the room, undressing for bed. "Tyler, come on. What's bad about your nickname? You've never had an issue with it before."

"I don't know. I just don't want to hear the name right now." Tyler headed towards their small bathroom to finish getting ready for bed, everything tilting and swaying step by step. "Can you grant me that one request for the rest of the night?"

"Yeah Tyler, I can."

Tyler let out his breath, looking at himself in the plain mirror. His face was white, his eyes were dark, and he looked exhausted. He quickly brushed his teeth and tried to bring some color back to his face, but he only had eyes for his bed. He flopped down on it, Reid taking his turn in the bathroom. Before Reid came out, Tyler was asleep, too drunk to care about anything.

* * *

Yay number two! Slow and steady, but thickens the plot. A little on the short side which i'm not to thrilled about, but idk, i'm a fan of how much better my writing has become. Hopefully it begins to draw people out to review :P that'd be pretty dope to see. Well, super bowl was interesting definitely this year, much quieter in my house and around me lol. Anywho. I hope this is at least enjoyable and not a huge snore-fest. This story definitely gets much better ^_^


	3. Sweat

**Chapter 3**

The wind swirled around Tyler's legs before drifting off, Tyler taking a step and peering around the corner of the building. Looking both directions he didn't see anyone, so he leaned back into the dark alleyway, letting out a sigh. He was safe for the moment, but he had no idea how long it would last. The little town had barely any activity going on, and whatever was active was currently looking for him. Tyler checked his power, a yellow spark flying from his finger. _Okay, my power hasn't been blocked or anything...good. _

Footsteps crunched nearby, Tyler getting low and silently moving further into the dark, hoping whoever was out there wouldn't see him. He didn't know where the darkness went behind him, but he didn't expect it to go anywhere helpful. He watched an older couple walk by his hiding spot, not even glancing towards the alley. _Okay... I need to make a break for it. I'll be cornered if I'm found here._

Tyler made his way closer to the mouth of the alley, and glanced around the corners one more time, seeing an empty road, street lights helping the sidewalks glow but didn't reach the numerous shops that were closed for the evening. Tyler came out and slowly walked down the sidewalk, the couple soon turning down a side street. The images blurred as he walked past them, swirling into one another and disappearing into the darkness. _"I need to get out of here..."_ he muttered, looking around him once more before hiding off into another alleyway. Looking around, he only saw darkness, and sighed once more. _"I need to get away...soon..." I can feel my sanity slipping._ Tyler let out another sigh and took a few more steps further back, crouching down and listening to his surroundings. _ "But where is he?"_

"_Boo."_

Tyler jumped up, but he felt a hand wrapping around his mouth, his body being pulled upwards and against a strong, lean figure. The person giggled, leaning their chin on Tyler's shoulder. Tyler could smell the unwashed hair and oily skin, the putrid dirt numbing his nose. He struggled, but the person simply giggled and dragged him further into the alleyway.

"_Boy... Boy, boy, boy... Baby Boy. My Baby Boy." _The person shuddered, their warm breath snaking its way around him. Tyler struggled more, but the person had a tight grip on him. _"We'll be there soon. Quit struggling, Baby Boy."_

Tyler grabbed his power, but his father was much quicker. He used the hand that was covering Tyler's mouth to emit a small surge of the power, the quick burst searing Tyler's cheeks. He stopped his struggles for the moment as the pain consumed his mind, his yells making more escape through the hand. Even though small amounts of skin had been actually damaged, it felt as if his whole face had briefly been lit on fire. His body began calming down, Tyler now dizzy as he felt himself being thrown on the concrete ground.

His father quickly sat on Tyler's waist, pinning his arms above his head, his legs not able to move much. Straps of the power were placed around Tyler's body so he couldn't squirm away, his father's first action of course being to kiss Tyler's neck, slowly sliding his tongue up to Tyler's jaw line, planting small kisses up his cheek.

"_Baby Boy, please, I want you so bad tonight. You're too devilish to resist."_ His father attacked his neck again, his hands roaming freely, ignoring Tyler's minute wiggles and cries. His father's hands paused on Tyler's hips, rubbing up and down the bone, adding slight pressure to certain spots. His father found one that caused Tyler to intake a quick breath, and sent a shiver throughout his body that was slightly arousing. _"So you like to be touched here, do you?" _

His father applied pressure once more, Tyler letting out an audible gasp, his father enjoying the sound and pressing down even harder, working the area under a hard massage. Tyler soon began panting, his father grinding his dick against the hardening possession of Tyler's. His father made contact with Tyler's lips, Tyler trying his hardest to fight against all emotions that he was feeling. _This isn't happening, this isn't happening, this is not real, at all, whatsoever. But God, please, get me out of this!_

His father's tongue roamed freely around Tyler's mouth, forcing his tongue into action. One hand slid up and down his side, the other hand still working on the magic spot as the grinding continued. _"You're more magnificent tonight than you have been in a long time, Ty-Ty. Why can't you be like this more often?"_

Tyler couldn't answer. He was trying to hide so far into his mind that not even Reid could bring him back out. His father bit his neck aggressively, sucking hard and close to drawing blood. Tyler screamed, his father biting harder as he and Tyler both came, his hand pausing on Tyler's hip for once. Tears of misery flowed down his cheeks, his father planting soft kisses along his neck and chin. _"You're a good boy, Ty-Ty. I do hope you know that." _A soft set of giggles ensued. _"Looks like we've made a bit of a mess about ourselves, haven't we?" _His father simply sat on him still, Tyler weak and paralyzed, mentally and physically. He had never cum before while his father was trying to rub him off, but his father had also never known about that spot.

_It's all gone. He's taken just about everything from me. _Tyler stared unblinking out into the darkness, unable to lift his head towards the disgusting creature he was forced to call his father. He felt the straps holding him down fade, his father still sitting on him. He missed the smirk that formed on his father's face, and the slow lift of an arm that came crashing down into his stomach.

Tyler coughed and opened his eyes, able to finally curl into a full ball. "Tyler? Can you hear me?"

Tyler felt dizzy, his mind trying to gather why he was in his room now and not being abused by his father. He looked at Reid, tried sitting up, only to collapse back onto his bed, looked to the bathroom, then back to Reid, his breaths increasing as he couldn't comprehend what was happening.

"Tyler, stay with me. How do you feel?"

Tyler tried to keep himself from hyperventilating, but managed to look at Reid, darting his eyes to meet Reid's, before looking down at his pale chest, to the wall behind him, and then off again around the room, barely putting anything together. "Like...like I need to throw up..." he gasped out.

"Come on, work with me Tyler, we'll get you into the bathroom. Come on, I believe in you." Reid was attempting to stand Tyler up, but he didn't know how to work his limbs correctly. He still was having a hard time deciphering which was reality and which was the nightmare, unable to believe that he was now with Reid and not his father. "Trust me Tyler, please, you need to help me out a little."

Tyler looked up at Reid, the blonde doing his best to help Tyler walk to the bathroom. Tyler found better coordination with his muscles, Reid having a strong grip on Tyler's side, Tyler doing his best to hold onto Reid's shoulder. "All right man, you're doing good. Just a little further, Tyler. Let's go."

He soon made it, hurling into the toilet and feeling even worse than he did before. He sat there, hunched over and gasping as he clumsily flushed the toilet and waited to see if he was done or not. Whether or not it was the alcohol or the dream that made him throw up, he wasn't sure. When he was felt more stabilized he stood up with Reid's help and cleaned up, able to look more at Reid without freaking out, though his balance was horribly skewed, Reid having to hold onto his shoulder. "Bed time..." Tyler muttered, looking at the far distance to his bed.

"Are you feeling better now?" Reid asked, sounding much more sober than he did earlier.

"No, just want my bed." He began to move, but the next thing he knew he was on the ground, a dull throbbing arising in the back of his head. Reid was there next to him, helping sit him up. "What...?" he muttered, feeling even dizzier than before.

"I'm just going to put you on my bed. Maybe you'll sleep better, and it's closer to here than your bed is. I'm going to pick you straight up, so hold on, okay?"

Tyler nodded, confused once again on what was going on. But, as Reid picked him up, Tyler wrapped his arms around his neck, just going along with the ride. Reid placed him down in his bed, Tyler struggling to sit up. "My bed, I need to be in my bed," he said, bits of the dream colliding with his vision of reality.

"No you don't. We'll trade tonight. I'll wake you up if anything bad is about to happen. Now, sleep. I know you're tired and we have school in a few hours."

Tyler couldn't ignore the palm that was pressing him gently to lie down, or the sleep that was overcoming him again. "But... I can't...dream..." he muttered, meeting Reid's eyes once more before his closed, sleep cascading through his mind and dragging him into the deepest depths.

~~/~~

"Tyler... Tyler... Wake up, Tyler..."

Tyler struggled to open his eyes, his processing mind two steps behind. He groaned, not able to move or make much more noise than that.

"Tyler... You awake?" Tyler registered that he was lying face down, and shook his head the best that he could, curling slightly more into the sheets. "Come on, we have to get up for school."

Tyler simply laid there, attempting to make his mind catch up to reality. He attempted moving, but was still too weak. "Can't...move..."

He barely heard Reid stand up and he began shaking Tyler, telling him to wake up. Tyler came to realize that Reid was shaking him from the wrong side, which caused him to turn his head and start opening his eyes. Instead of Reid shaking his left side, Reid was shaking Tyler's right side, and Tyler could vaguely make out the other bed in the room. _I'm not on a bed backwards... Like, there's the pillows, and the closet...and... _Tyler quickly sat up, looking around the room with wide eyes. "Why am I in your bed?"

He looked at Reid, then back around the room, then at himself, not understanding what was going on. "You kind of freaked out last night, so I put you in my bed to try to calm you down. It seems to have worked."

The exhaustion hit Tyler again, but now that he was sitting up, he had to move the rest of his body. "Sorry man. Didn't mean to start anything."

He swung his legs over the bed and looked past Reid at his closet, not wanting to walk so far away. He saw Reid watching him and stood up, swaying slightly as a dull thud began in his forehead and at the back of his head as well. "You didn't start anything. How are you feeling?"

"In a lot of pain..." Tyler looked at his closet again and slowly walked over, stumbling over everything and having to hold onto items as he moved past.

He heard Reid stand up and move over to his own closet, asking, "Are you going to be all right for school?"

"No, but I've dealt with worse."

Tyler moved as fast as he could, but Reid still beat him by a long shot for getting ready. The day didn't progress any better, Tyler beginning to come back to life towards the end of the school day. Caleb and Pogue didn't say anything to them, which Tyler was content with. When it stopped hurting to think, he began to remember the previous night in bits and pieces, and was able to notice the exhaustion in Reid. Why Reid was exhausted was more a mystery that needed to be solved than his own memories, Tyler never knowing Reid to be any kinds of hung over or tired after a night of drinking.

At the end of the day, Tyler was walking at a slightly slower pace than normal, Reid keeping even with him. "Why didn't you sleep last night?"

"You don't remember?"

Tyler looked at Reid out of the corner of his eye, not knowing how to interpret the question. "What happened?"

Reid stayed quiet for a little bit, Tyler shivering in the cold. "You had a nightmare or something, and when you came to, you were really out of it. You got sick and you ended up hitting your head, and I put you in my bed to see if you would calm down at all. I stayed awake to make sure that you were going to be all right."

Tyler was stunned into silence. He never needed Reid to watch over him; he was supposed to watch over Reid, like he would when they were younger. He knew that Reid was leaving out what he considered minor details, but what Tyler thought was important as well. "So... I guess I was pretty bad then."

"Only a minor hassle. Nothing I couldn't handle." Tyler looked up and saw Reid's smirk that he couldn't disguise in his voice.

"Thanks for watching over me, then. I'm sor—"

Reid smacked Tyler across the head, Tyler pausing before he opened the door. Before Tyler could ask 'what the heck,' Reid cut in, "Stop apologizing. I could have gone to sleep, because I knew you'd be fine after you passed out. But I wanted to make sure that I'd be awake if something did happen to go wrong. So, I stayed up, taking little naps here and there. And you barely moved at all."

Tyler remained silent, knowing that he wasn't going to be able to stay awake the full night. They walked back up to their rooms, Tyler changing as soon as he could. Sitting on his now cold bed, he looked at Reid and said, "I appreciate you staying up and watching me to make sure I was going to be okay, and I bet you're hella exhausted right now."

Reid shook his head. "No, not entirely. Take a nap if you want. You've been dragging all day, and I know you need more sleep from last night." Tyler opened his mouth to argue, but Reid shut him up. "Whatever, man, it'll only be for a little bit. And then I can take a nap. It's fair."

Sleep threatened to pull at his eyelids, Tyler not wanting to admit it. "Fine... but only for a little while. I have homework."

"Sure thing, Baby Boy," Reid said softly, Tyler shutting his eyes and quickly fading into sleep, whether he truly wanted to or not.

_Baby Boy... Baby Boy... _echoed around his mind, Tyler trying to shake off the two words, although his mind and body was succumbing to the sleep. He felt like he was falling, but couldn't do anything about it. He slowly came to realize that there were buildings around him, light posts lined down the street, none of the light reaching any of the shop faces. He stood up, carefully looking around him and heading closer to the shops to hide in the dark. The streets were desolate in the night, a slight chill to the air. He didn't see anyone around, the streets devoid of any cars. Tyler began walking down the street, a slight giggling reaching his ears, sounding distant.

Tyler ducked into the nearest alley, listening carefully. _I can't allow him to find me... I have to hold off as long as I can._ He stiffened as he heard footsteps crunching along the stone sidewalk, and ducked even further into the alleyway, watching an older couple walk by. _I suppose there are people who live around here. _He snuck closer to the mouth of the alleyway and looked around, not seeing anything that gave a resemblance to his father at all. _Move, before he finds me... _Tyler quickly left his hiding spot, keeping to the dark as he watched the couple turn down a random side street. He paused, watching the couple walk. _This feels like I've seen it before... Déjà vu? But how?_

He slowly continued walking up the sidewalk, listening for anything. He approached another set of small shops, hearing the giggling once more. Tyler ducked into an alleyway and leaned against the wall, trying to calm his heart down. It was silent for the moment, Tyler letting out the breath he had been holding. Turning to look out the alleyway once more, he muttered, _"Where is he? Or am I losing my mind?"_

"_Boo."_

Tyler tried turning, but his attacker wrapped a hand around his mouth, the other arm wrapped around his chest and hugging him towards his body. Tyler smelled stale clothes and moldy hair, causing his senses to go haywire and demand that Tyler stopped touching him. He tried struggling, but the person had a tight grip. Knowing that this wasn't going to end well, he grabbed his powers and was about to shoot them at the person, but the person had the power as well. He shot a small portion through his fingers and into Tyler's skin, causing the boy to stop moving for a few minutes as he tried to decipher why his face felt like it had briefly been lit on fire.

His assailant pulled him further into the alleyway, Tyler soon renewing his struggles as the pain began to leave him. _"My Baby Boy has returned to me. My Baby Boy..."_

Even though it was useless, Tyler still struggled, his father finally throwing him onto the ground and sitting on top of him, using his powers to strap Tyler down. Tyler stared wide eyed at his father, the rest of what was going to happen rushing through his mind. He began panicking, doing whatever he could to get out of the bonds. _"Let me go! I refuse to go through this again!"_

"_Baby Boy... Why must you be difficult? You're too handsome to resist."_

He leaned down and kissed Tyler's neck, Tyler attempting to bat the crazed man away from him. _"Help! Get away from me! Help!"_

His father slowly rubbed his hands up and down Tyler's hip bones, looking at Tyler with soft eyes and a gentle smile... It was the fatherly face that Tyler remembered from childhood. His father hit Tyler's soft spot on his hips, causing him to flinch. _"What's this? A reaction from my Ty-Ty?"_

He pressed the spot once more, Tyler gasping as much as he tried to resist. _"Stop! No more!"_

His father pressed his finger down the spot and massaged it, Tyler letting out an audible gasp, shivers beginning to overcome his body. His father took advantage of the moment and pressed his mouth over Tyler's, grinding his hard cock against his son's hardening one. _Not again, not again, not again..._

He began retreating once more to the far reaches of his mind, knowing that not even Reid could reach him there. It was easier to push away how his body was finally reacting to his father's touch, something that Reid told him would never happen. He vaguely heard his father groan, Tyler making quiet whimpers, whether out of pain or pleasure though he wasn't sure. _Get me out of here... Help, Reid, before it's too late again... Reid, please!_

Tyler felt disconnected from his body, his mind becoming dizzy and swirling around him. He tried to right himself, but he felt like he was going to be sick. His body felt lighter, and his mouth was closed. _What? _He opened his eyes, blinking rapidly in the light. He felt like he was still on the cold concrete, the taste of his father's saliva still in his mouth. Tyler coughed at the thought, and then gagged, causing him to get up and run to the bathroom, vomiting into the toilet.

"Not another repeat of last night, please," he heard Reid say from the doorway, Tyler catching his breath before he cleaned up.

"Shut it." The feeling and imagery passed across his mind again, Tyler gagging for a second before throwing up once more, feeling dirtier by the second. His stomach was empty though, so he knew that he should get up and brush his teeth.

When he was back in the room, he looked at Reid, who was looking back at him with a careful gaze. "How are you feeling? You haven't hit your head so that's good."

"I'm having a hard time deciphering reality for dreamland." Tyler stumbled over to his bed and collapsed again, though he knew he couldn't pass out.

"What was in dreamland?"

Tyler continued to hide his face in his pillow, listening to Reid's voice to try to analyze the look he had. Reid's voice was soft, asking the question carefully to see Tyler's reaction. How many times though had Tyler played this game with Reid? The constant roundabout questions that rarely ever got to the point, the heated arguments, and the tears that no one else was ever supposed to see. He could play this game too, give Reid the stress that he had given Tyler, but he wasn't going to stress Reid already more than he had today. He'd have to pick and choose his own words carefully, feeding Reid the broad truth. Moving his head to look at Reid, he said, "Buildings, a couple, some alleys."

"That's a start. Judging by how you were begging me to wake you up though, I'm sure there was a lot more than that."

"Begging?"

"Yeah." Reid lied down and put his arms behind his head, voice still soft. "Begging. Asking for _me_ specifically to wake you up."

Tyler hid his face in his pillow and remained there for a few minutes, still feeling his father's hands on him. He shivered, but there was nothing he could do to get the touch to go away.

"What'd your father do?"

Tyler went stiff, even pausing his breath. Moving his head slightly, eyes closed, he said, "That's a pretty bold question."

"Not like you haven't asked me almost the same thing before. So it was your father. That's really all I wanted to know."

_Fuck. Fuck you Reid and your games. _Tyler still laid there, hoping Reid could just slip off into his own little nap and Tyler could have some alone time. Finally though, he sighed and moved, looking at his backpack and forcing himself to distract himself with his homework. Reid remained silent the entire time, an hour or so later Tyler looking over and seeing that Reid was actually asleep. Tyler kept himself busy through the entire night, feigning sleep in the morning so Reid wouldn't be suspicious. He knew though that he looked like shit, but he figured he could do his best to fight through the day and worry about sleep some other night.

* * *

Here we are again! Yay! Happy Valentine's Day, to all. This isn't 'singles awareness day', it's a day of spreading joy and all and just doing random acts of kindness to people who you have never met, and probly will never see again. It's really not that bad of a day, at least not to me. And it shouldn't really be depressing for anyone else. Idk. Today is my christmas, in a sense. But, on a lighter note, here's the chapter :) it's been stuck in my head for the past few days and so has this song. Idk if i'm gonna change the title of this chapter, Sweat, to the next chapter or not... We'll see next time. I love this story a ton...and if there's any grammar mistakes i'm sorry...it was a quick read-through... Have a great day!


	4. Eleven

**Chapter 4**

"Earth to Tyler, come in Tyler, over."

Tyler shook his head and looked at Reid, slightly drawing his eyebrows together. "Huh?"

"Did you hear anything I just said?"

Tyler shook his head, looking back down to his notes. He tried remembering, but somehow the last four days blurred together, and according to Reid it was Monday night, and not Saturday. "Sorry, I zoned out again. What about the variables?"

"Dude, that was two questions ago." Tyler watched Reid drop his book onto the ground, sighing in frustration. Tyler set his book to the side, giving as much of his attention as he could to Reid. "Tyler, you're frustrating me right now."

"Why?" His voice sounded more vacant and light than Reid's harsh tone.

"Because you're not sleeping again! You've been up for at least the last two or three days straight, and you've closed yourself off somehow. You're not letting me in on this one, and that's not good."

Tyler crossed his legs, looking down at his hands, his mind feeling blank with exhaustion. "Don't worry about me, dude. I have it under control."

"No, you don't. I'm not going to play these games, Tyler. You have to sleep at some point."

Tyler looked up and out of the corner of his eye saw a shadow of a man. He quickly glanced over in the direction and saw it was only a shadow of Reid's clothes. He remained silent as Reid gazed at him uncertainly, not knowing what to make out of Tyler's wandering eyes. Tyler though didn't want to admit that his friend was right, and looked back down at his own bed, trying to remember the last four days. Nothing special happened Friday, he thought they saw Mack on Saturday, and then ran into Caleb and Pogue on Sunday at different places, and then at school again. Pogue made a comment of how tired Tyler looked, Caleb peering at the younger boy as well, but Tyler attempted to explain that he was coming down with a cold and it was hitting him harder than normal.

"Tyler?"

Tyler glanced back up at Reid again, barely able to force a weak grin. "I'm going to sleep at some point, I just haven't decided when yet."

Reid growled in frustration and grabbed his math book again, forcing on with the problems. Tyler reached down and picked up his as well, trying to make out the words that were dancing and sliding across the page. He attempted a few problems, but Reid finished before him and Tyler could tell he was becoming irritated again. _It almost makes me want to sleep so he's not mad at me anymore. I don't know how much more I can take of his growls. _

"How much more homework do you have?"

Tyler looked up from the problem again, once more seeing an obvious figure in Reid's closet. "Not a whole lot I suppose. I'm mostly caught up in everything."

"If I do the rest of your math homework, will you take a nap? Or were you planning on working on it the entire night through?"

_These numbers are sliding around...a lot. _"Maybe. I know you have a few tricks up your sleeve if I refuse."

"All short of knocking you out myself, yeah."

"Fine Reid, you fucking win. You better wake me up before ten, otherwise—"

"What? You're going to be mad at me for attempting to help you out? So what if I don't wake you up if you're in a decent sleep for once? Tyler, you need it, and I'm not able to deal with your crabby ass anymore. You're dragging hardcore, and if you fall anymore, even Caleb and Pogue will notice, and if they don't, the teacher's will and I honestly don't know which option is worse."

Tyler felt his anger begin to rise as he stared at Reid. "You don't fucking understand, Reid. I _can't _let myself sleep the entire night through. My mind won't let me. No matter how many times I close my eyes, praying that tonight will be the night, I can't do it because I know what's waiting. You've been there before, but you were still able to sleep an entire night. I knew what signs to look for as soon as you entered a nightmare, and I was able to pull you out. I swear that this is worse than what you had."

"And this just shows how much you need to let me help you. The Tyler I know wouldn't be saying all of this, wouldn't be giving in to the nightmares. He would try to overcome them and _allow _his best friend to help him out. We never _fucking _argue, dude. Let me help you out, which starts off by you telling me what the fuck your last dream was."

Tyler stood up and grabbed his keys, slipping on his shoes and trying his best not to sway. "I'm getting out of here."

"No you're not." Tyler made to move towards the door, but Reid was moving faster than he was and beat Tyler to the door.

He walked up to Reid, staring his best friend in the eyes. "Reid, move."

Reid simply looked back at him, arms crossed. "Let me help you."

"I can handle it. I'll sleep when I'm ready."

"You're not leaving this room. You shouldn't drive, and if you have to go anywhere, I'm going along as well if you feel that you _must _drive. If you want to drive, alone, for the hell of it, I will restrain you to your bed and knock you out myself. You look like death and you may end up becoming sick here soon."

_Fuck you Reid! Let me go! _Tyler's anger was boiling under his skin, unable to be held back much longer. "I'm not thirteen fucking years old anymore. I know what I can and can't handle."

"As do I, and you can't drive anywhere, let alone stand without swaying. Work on that one, first."

Without warning, Tyler punched Reid across the face and shoved him out of the way of the door, taking his moment to leave and walk briskly down the hall, the adrenaline waking his delusional mind up for a few moments. He rushed out to his hummer, unknowing if Reid would follow him or not. He didn't even know where he wanted to go; he just wanted to get out and drive, but Reid had some valid points. _Nothing the power can't momentarily fix. If anything, I'll just come back after Reid has gone to sleep and finish the rest of my homework. I'll sleep tomorrow...maybe._

Tyler got into his hummer and pulled out of the parking lot, driving without a purpose. He drove up and down all of the back roads that he knew, not having to focus on the road as much as he thought he would. The wheel turned easily in his hand, and it was soothing with the soft rock playing in the background. An hour later his phone began ringing, Tyler shutting it off so Reid couldn't call him anymore. _I know this is immature, but I need to be by myself right now. _

He found a park that him and Reid used to graffiti once in a while and parked, his truck warm as he turned off the soothing engine, switching to a CD that also helped keep him calm. The more he thought about it, the more he realized what an ass he was being to Reid, but it was almost too late now to go to bed, otherwise he'd have to risk being late to school. The thought of sleep was very tempting, but he knew what nightmares were waiting on the other end. _Reid's done this before, and I always watched him. Now, he's trying to watch me, and I fucking punched him in the face. _Tyler opened his eyes and sighed, not wanting to move from the seat.

He stared blankly out of the window, a street light flickering on and causing Tyler to jump. Underneath the light was his father, but as soon as Tyler rubbed his eyes, the image was gone and all Tyler was looking at was an empty parking spot. "I need to go..." he muttered, starting his hummer and quickly heading back towards the dorms. As much as he hated it at the moment, the dorms were his one safe haven. He had to come to his senses though and allow Reid to help him out, otherwise the delusions wouldn't get any better.

He heard his phone ringer go off again, and tried looking for it, coming close to swerving off of the road. The ringer went silent, Tyler cussing and waiting until he was parked again to look for it. He arrived at the dorms and then looked for his phone, seeing that Reid had left him a voicemail, stating that if Tyler didn't want to get punched in return, he should stay out of the dorm and away from Reid until their first class. Tyler dropped his phone and leaned his head against his steering wheel, close to releasing silent tears of despair. He glanced at his clock and saw it was eleven, not knowing who to call. Caleb and Pogue asked too many questions, Mack was trashed already, as well as his roommates didn't care much for Tyler, and that only left Tyler's home.

_Fuck. No. _Tyler looked at it from as many angles as he could, and the only ones were sleeping in his car or his bed. The car would send him into a panic attack within a few hours, with another few hours to convince himself to get back into his hummer. So that only left his parents house. _On the bright side I should be able to sneak into my room through the outside doors. _Tyler started his hummer and regrettably drove it out into the country side, kicking up dirt from the roads and taking the ever so familiar road to the back of his parent's house.

Tyler turned off his lights and slowly came up to the house, doing his best to silently get out of his hummer and walk up to his bedroom doors. He cut through a few bushes and rock patches, walking up onto the stone patio and over to the outside doors. He took out his spare key and carefully put it in, turning the lock and giving a slight smile when he was able to open the door still. He quickly went in and shut the door, sighing in relief. Thrilled that his bedroom door was still shut, he used his cell phone for light to grab his extra pajamas and dress for bed, as well as using his private bathroom. When he was ready he didn't even bother to set an alarm. _If Reid doesn't want to see me tomorrow, then nobody will. I'm going to sleep as long as I can, since mother leaves at eight, father at six. I won't have anything to worry about. _With that, Tyler passed quickly into unconsciousness, too exhausted to be aware of any dreams that wanted to plague his mind.

~~/~~

When Tyler was next awake, he saw that it was past noon. He had a relieved smile crossing his face as he stretched, still exhausted but feeling much more in control. He hadn't woken up from any dreams, and he had slept a little under twelve hours. _There was no way I would have made it to school today. I don't even care, because it was that worth it. _He worked his way out of his bed, noticing that he hadn't moved too much during the night. He found spare clothes that he kept there for breaks, and went into his shower, taking his time to clean himself and wake up completely, planning out how his day was going to go.

Feeling confident, Tyler finished and dressed, grabbing the extra clothes and about to leave the house when he heard the front door slam shut. _What the hell? No one should be here right now. _His heartbeat steadily increasing, Tyler listened carefully for any specific sounds from the intruder. He heard nothing, and was about to run to his car when the giggling reached his ears. Tyler froze and almost collapsed as his mind began to crack.

"No..." He muttered, slowly turning towards the door and waiting for it to slowly open.

"_Ty-Ty, you better not be leaving without saying bye-bye." _

The giggling began again, becoming louder as it came closer. Tyler slowly backed towards the door, keys in hand just in case he could bolt for the hummer. He slightly cracked open his back door, just as his father cracked open the room door, an eager smile on his face as he slowly materialized into the room. "My, my, Baby Boy, how fine you are today. And, you smell quite clean. I approve."

Tyler didn't move from the door as his father smiled, looking around the room at the posters and pictures. He did this every time, never acting bored. Tyler simply stood still, his power on the back burner, waiting to be used. Finally he made his way to Tyler, lightly pressing his chest against Tyler's, gazing into Tyler's eyes as he slowly rubbed a hand over his head. His father leaned closer, Tyler taking his chance and shooting his power into his father's stomach, attempting to push the slightly bigger man off of him and get out the door.

His father stumbled and caught himself, then tackled Tyler and smashed him into the glass window. "You think you can get out of here? Well, you're going to be getting a lesson here soon." His father grabbed his hair and dragged him to the bed, throwing him on it and quickly pinning him down. Leaning down close to his ear, he whispered, "We are going to do this my way today. I don't think you will enjoy it much, but you have to be a man someday. And someday, maybe you will walk in my shoes and I can teach you how to embrace this."

"You're fucking crazy. You aren't my father, and you never have been."

His father slowly planted light kisses down the side of his face and across Tyler's neck, giggling when he came to the other ear. "Oh really now, you think you're going to get away from this? You have another thing coming."

Tyler let out a strained growl, his father giggling as he then nipped at Tyler's neck, slowly beginning to suck on the boy's neck, his hands wandering down his sides and working their way under his shirt. Tyler struggled and almost succeeded, until his father finally sat up and punched him across the face, telling him to quiet down. "You're ruining the mood if you struggle so hard. Please, Baby Boy, don't make me hurt you anymore."

"You'll never stop hurting me. It's all you find pleasure in anymore."

"Oh, you little defiant bastard. But you're mine, and I suppose that's all that really matters."

His father went for his mouth, the hands sliding up and down Tyler's side as the evident cock pressed into his leg. Tyler tried biting his tongue, but his father placed a little bit of pressure onto Tyler's hips, his father catching the slight change in Tyler's breathing afterwards. His father pulled away, smiling. "What is this? Someplace that Ty-Ty responds too?" He gently pressed the spot again, Tyler shutting his eyes and breathing in sharply through gritted teeth.

Simply watching Tyler for a moment, his father massaged the spot and saw how it affected him. Tyler couldn't help the increase of his heartbeat or the heat that washed through him, his muscles tightening, or the slight panting whimpers that were escaping his mouth. He could feel his own dick hardening and felt disgusted with himself, but his senses were becoming overloaded and he didn't know how else to react.

"I see you like this, Ty-Ty. I'm very upset that I haven't discovered it sooner. No worries, I'm sure I can make the best out of it."

His father came at him with a new vengeance, Tyler knowing this was his punishment and his father's greatest desires. His father nipped Tyler's ear, a shiver rolling down Tyler's spine. His father rubbed his hips harder against Tyler's, the younger boy only responding due to the stimulants. His father took Tyler's mouth once again with his, Tyler retreating in his mind and slowly crawling away, the touch of his father too much for him. He wanted it to be done and overwith so he could leave and be alone once more.

His father began rubbing his hips with more passion and force, moaning, the body under him releasing squeals and gasps of pleasure. Tyler realized how verbal he was, and forced himself further along the dark hallway as he lost control of his body. He could feel his father grinding against him, both him and Tyler close to releasing. _Please, hurry and be done with it. I want to leave. I want to hide. I want to be gone from everything. But why must I go through with this a third time. Why?_

Finally, his father moved his mouth from Tyler's and began biting his neck once more, more deep moans escaping. As one, they both came together, his father holding himself up for a few seconds, a wide grin on his face. He collapsed onto Tyler, burying his face in his son's chest. "We are one, son. One and one together, forever. Please, skip school and do stop by more often."

His father kissed him on the forehead and walked out, Tyler only seeing darkness as he stared at the ceiling above him. His heart was still pounding and he was shaking, unable to comprehend that this is reality and not one of his dreams again. He listened to his father shut the door and knew he was heading towards his bedroom on the other side of the house. _I will change, and then I will leave. That is it. I can...go back to the dorms and plan it from there. I still have a little while to calm down before Reid gets home._

Tyler quickly changed his clothes, made sure he had everything, and bolted out of the door before the leering eyes came back, determined to receive seconds.

* * *

And...here we are. Again. I've gone through and reread the story, and I have to say I'm quite pleased with how it's building. Idk. It get's so much better from here, and I want to thank the few reviews I have, especially one of the last ones. I'm glad whoever is following this story is actually enjoying it. So, I'm caught between Eleven and Passion as the title for this chapter, but i think Passion will come in handy another time. I truly thank Maynard James Keenan for his amazing lyrics and people's interpretations of his songs. Definitely makes writing this story so much more fun. And i'm thrilled my muses have returned, if even a little bit... But, thank you readers for enjoying the story thus far. hehehe :P


	5. Resin

**Chapter 5**

Tyler was staring at the page in front of him, empty, excluding the one word written across it: Blood. He couldn't remember where the red ink came from, and he didn't really care. He renewed his bouts of shaking, unable to take his eyes off of the paper.

"Tyler?"

He jumped, staring wide eyed at the person who had just walked in. He wanted to say something, knew he should say anything, but he couldn't get his mouth to move or his vocals to even make a sound. He sat there and stared at his best friend, wondering where the last two hours or more had gone to.

"What's wrong?" Reid dropped his backpack and came closer to Tyler, looking at him more fully. "Why weren't you here last night? Why didn't you come to school today?"

Fear began filling Tyler's heart, Reid too close for comfort. He couldn't respond though. His voice seemed to quit working, which only appeared to frustrate Reid more. "What happened, Tyler?"

Tyler only shook his head, running away from Reid's words. He went on autopilot, or zombie-mode as Pogue called it. He was silent and unmoving, staring off to nowhere, and barely recognized that a person was saying his name. From past experiences though, he knew Reid was only trying to get him to come back. But Reid wasn't going to know how to take him out of this one; he had been figuring out how to dig himself deeper into the hole.

He tried remembering how he had gotten back to the dorms. He barely remembered the drive; the shock hadn't yet set in. As he stumbled up to his room though, he was feeling the panic, and had taken a hot shower and changed his clothes once again. After that his mind went blank. He knew Reid saw the paper, and didn't know how he was going to interpret it. Hell, he didn't even know where it came from.

The thoughts flew from Tyler's mind as he reached the depths of his hole. There was only darkness around him, sweet silent bliss. He began to relax, not even caring what was happening to his body. He would come out when he was ready, whether or not anyone cared.

~~/~~

Tyler felt a short sting, causing him to open his eyes and look around. A light quickly jumped onto Tyler, the zap causing him to flinch. More of the lights began appearing, shooting into Tyler. Beginning to panic, he had no choice but to flee his hiding spot. The pain eased as he exited the deeper layers, quickly being pulled back into his body. Groaning, he slightly moved his head back and forth, not ready to open his eyes. Feeling began returning to his limbs, the numbness disappearing slowly.

When he felt ready enough, he opened his eyes and blinked rapidly in the amber glow of a lamp. The blurry objects soon became the figures of Caleb, Pogue, and Reid. He quickly shut his eyes again, wanting to disappear into the darkness. "Tyler? Can you hear me?" Caleb asked, Tyler briefly opening his eyes and seeing Caleb moving a finger slowly back and forth across his vision.

"Yeah," Tyler gasped, shutting his eyes once more to the bright light.

He took in a deep breath, frustrated that they had taken him out of his hiding spot. "How are you feeling?"

Letting his breath out, he kept his eyes shut as he buried his face back into his knees. "Like shit."

"What happened?" he heard Reid ask, and Tyler was once again ready to fall asleep.

"I'm not sure. I don't know what all happened."

"Are you going to be okay?"

"Yeah. I just want to be by myself right now."

Tyler tried relaxing and ignoring the other guys around him, but there was only so much that you could do sitting up. He didn't hear anything for a moment, but finally the shuffle of clothes moved away from the bed. He slowly released the air he held in his lungs, feeling better when he heard the door shut. What he wasn't expecting was to hear someone moving back closer to the bed, Tyler peeking up over his knees and looking at Reid. They made eye contact, Reid crossing his arms and sitting on his own bed. "What happened?" He asked again.

"I don't know. I can't explain."

"Yes you can. What about the paper? "

"I don't remember how I did that, or even why."

"And school, why weren't you there?"

"I was sleeping." Tyler looked at his bed, wondering how comfortable it would be slip under the covers. He couldn't allow himself to be mad though. This was his best friend. Reid didn't know anything that happened, and Tyler wanted it to stay like that.

"All right Tyler, fine. Tomorrow though, I'm going to ask again. And when you get your nightmares back, I'll stay up with you and help you out, because it's what you did with me."

Silence settled around the room, Tyler feeling guilty again. He heard Reid pull something, pages flipping and pausing, Tyler finally deciding to try sleeping and pretending that he had never gone home.

~~/~~

The branches slid by his face quickly, the sharp whips giving a slight sting before the cold took it all away. He tried to run from his pursuer, but he didn't know the lay of the land very well. The ominous giggles would occasionally reach his ears, being the only motivation he had to continue running. Trees jumped in front of him, trying to trip him with their roots, almost succeeding many times. _"Ty-Ty, please stop running... You're so hard to get sometimes." _Giggling ensued, Tyler's determination renewed.

Finally, Tyler's fears were met when he tripped over a root, his shoulder prodded by a stray branch as he fell, ripping his clothes before landing painfully on the base of a tree. He felt his palms, knees, and forearms scratch open, and cursed his luck. He tried standing back up, but he was kicked back onto the ground, a foot placed along his spine. _"You're in trouble, mister. You've evaded me for far too long now. Why would you want to anger me so? Haven't you learned anything yet?"_

Panting, he simply laid against the tree, ignoring the dirt and bark that was pressing into his face. _"I thought I'd escape," _he muttered into the tree, more weight being added onto his back.

Tyler gave a slight grunt of pain, the harsh voice asking, _"What was that? I don't think I heard you correctly."_

Tyler yelled out as the shoe twisted against his spine, still more weight being added. _"I was trying to escape!"_

"_That's what I thought you said. Now, you are going to listen to me. You've pissed me off, and that upsets me because this was not how I imagined all of this going. So, you better be ready for your punishment."_

Tyler cringed and let out a short yell as the boot gave one more twist before it was lifted off of his back, the lack of weight pleasant until the boot came into contact with Tyler's side. With quick succession the boot made contact with various parts of his torso, Tyler crying out in pain for a few. His father stopped, grabbed his collar, and pulled him up. Tyler saw the grin on his face, but the lust was still hidden in his eyes. He was pressed against the tree, the grin still holding strong. A fist then made contact with his face, Tyler barely comprehending the following punches due the excruciating pain from the first one. His face and chest already felt broken, but his father was relentless in his tactic.

He noticed that he was falling, grateful that the punches stopped. He hit the ground again and the boot stepped on the back of his legs, carefully holding his father's weight. _"Now, think carefully before you answer these questions. If I move just wrong, I can rip your calf muscles. I'm sure you can imagine how that wouldn't feel very pleasant. What have you learned?"_

"_Not to disobey your authority again."_

"_Good. Are you going to run from me ever again?"_

"_No sir."_

"_How about possessing a defiant attitude towards your superiors when they ask anything of you?"_

"_No sir. I have no reason for having acted the way I did towards you earlier. I should have stayed and accepted the guidance that you were planning on opening my mind to. I'm sorry."_

His father giggled and continued standing on Tyler's legs, Tyler trying to keep his body as still as possible so no harm would come. Finally his father chuckled, Tyler hoping he accepted the answer. _"Oh, Baby Boy, you're so cute. I know you're lying through your teeth, hoping that I would step off of you and we could carry on our way. But, you're going to remember this one, and hopefully, in the future, you will accept my teachings and look to me for wisdom and release your stupidity."_

His father dug the tread of the boots into Tyler's muscle, and barely felt his father grab the power as he quickly slid off of Tyler's legs, Tyler screaming as he felt his calf muscles rip. His whole body tightened in pain, his father just chuckling to the side. Thoughts of his father disappeared as he tried to make the pain more tolerable on any other level, but he needed his body to stop shaking first.

His father began nudging him with the boot, rocking him back and forth and ruining all that Tyler had done to calm the pain down. _"Oh Ty-Ty, you're so innocent when you're in pain. I simply love watching you try to overcome it, because frankly, you're not very good."_

Tyler was still tense, short zaps of pain being sent down his entire body, starting at his neck and quickly traveling his nerves before absorbing into his legs, causing him to yell aloud once more. He felt sick and opened his eyes, everything blurry. He rolled his head over to the right, not scraping his face against bark, and saw a light and a bed. Quickly looking to the left, he saw a door and desk. He was slammed with his senses, causing him to grab onto whatever was holding him up.

"Tyler, look at me. Show me that you're here in reality."

Still shaking and holding onto Reid's bare arms with a death grip, he made himself look at Reid, the shaking only becoming progressively worse. "Hi," he said, unsure of if there was anything else he could say, or if he even had to say anything at all as he became dizzy, the room spinning.

"Hello Tyler, glad to see that you're back with life once more." Tyler wanted to shuffle away, but Reid had a firm grip on his arms. It was hard to look into the blue eyes, because he knew what Reid was going to see. "Do you care to explain what brought on this nightmare of your father?"

Still shaking, all Tyler was able to do was shrug his shoulders, feeling as if he was falling down a hole, knowing that he was going to hit the bottom soon. Reid seemed to accept the shrug and released his arms, sitting back and watching Tyler. Tyler shifted his eyes, looking around the room as his body felt like it was about to start floating. "Nightmares..."

"Yeah, I know you have nightmares. Are you going to tell me what brought this one on? How bad was it in relation to the others?"

"They're getting worse," Tyler whispered, dipping his head down before his eyes wandered to the window. "What time is it?"

"Only around two. Do you need something to drink? Or do you want to talk? Or play video games or something?"

_Reid... You really do remember a lot of the things that I did to take care of you. But, you're going to get the same replies that I did. _"No thanks. Either it'll be homework or sleep."

"All right. Sometime though, you're going to tell me what happened at your parents place, and why your nightmares are getting worse. Just...don't doubt me Tyler. I'd hate to know if you didn't trust me."

_You're a sly fox, Reid. You probably thought about it today and talked to Mack to figure out where I went. _Nonetheless, Tyler felt a small grin form on his face. He looked up, saying, "I'll tell you. Let me try to get in the groove of things again. All right?" With that, Reid sat back on his bed and looked at Tyler for a second before turning off the light.

Tyler laid back down and was able to fall asleep, and too soon was Reid shaking him awake and helping him out of bed. He stayed awake in his first few classes, and managed to avoid Caleb and Pogue during lunch. He knew their talk wasn't over, but he was able to pretend it was for the moment. Reid was courteous to Tyler, helping him out with random things. Tyler didn't know if he was annoyed with it or not, but either way he remembered doing the same to Reid, who couldn't stand it at all. In his sixth hour class he fell asleep, Reid waking him up the first time, while the teacher caught him the second time.

"Mr. Simms!"

Tyler quickly jerked awake, sitting up and looking at his teacher with a dazed expression. "Yes sir?"

"There will be no more napping in my class. If you feel so inclined, you may attempt it in the Dean's office."

"Yes Mr. Bardion," Tyler said, and tried to relax. He became tense when his government teacher called his name, thinking it was his father for a second. He felt Reid nudge him and quickly glanced over, tapping his pen anxiously. "Sorry," he whispered, gently rolling his back across his chair.

Mr. Bardion continued with the lecture, Reid passing Tyler a note that read, _Loosen up. _Tyler glanced over and folded it up, choosing to doodle on his notebook to keep him awake. He lost focus in his surroundings and vaguely thought of what he was drawing. He followed each line, making it smooth and dark, little sketch lines around it for detail. He didn't realize if he was forming anything that actually made sense, but it kept him busy for a little while at least.

Towards the end of the period he finally came too and looked at what he was drawing and tried to jump back, but he was stuck and tipped the chair backwards, hitting his knees hard into the bottom of the table. He grabbed his notebook as he was falling, barely able to grasp the table with his free hand. He slammed into the wall, the chair sliding out from under him and crashing against the table legs, Tyler sitting on the ground and being squeezed awkwardly between the chair and the wall.

"Mr. Simms! Stay after class."

Students chuckled around the classroom as Reid helped Tyler up, grabbing whatever paper's he could off of the ground. There wasn't much space to move, and the girl next to Tyler looked like she was trying not to laugh as well. Tyler tried to calm his shaking as he heard the bell ring, but the sudden shuffling of students made him drop his papers and begin shaking again. "Fuck!" he muttered, Reid slapping his hand away.

"I got the papers. Set your seat up and go talk to Mr. Barron."

"Bardion."

"You know I don't give a shit. Go."

Tyler sat his chair up and walked to the front of the classroom, trying his best to remain calm. "Mr. Simms, can you please explain why you feel like you must cause a distraction in my class?"

"Sorry sir. I haven't been sleeping very much in the past few nights, and I guess my body decided that sleep was more important than listening."

"Right... I will talk to the Dean about this, and we will see what he thinks. You're a prime student, Simms, and it will be saddening to see your GPA drop."

"Yes, Mr. Bardion. Is that all?"

"Don't fall asleep in my class again. You better remember about the quiz tomorrow."

Tyler nodded and turned, spotting Reid by the door with their backpacks.

"How'd it go?"

Tyler put his backpack on and they quickly walked down the hall, Tyler looking for his pottery class. "Even though I'm his favorite student, he's still telling the Dean about me falling asleep."

"Talk to me. What's up?"

"Not now, Reid. I don't feel like freaking out again." Tyler stopped and looked at his classroom and then back at Reid. "Maybe soon. Before Caleb and Pogue talk to me. They...don't need to see me that weak."

Reid nodded and Tyler went in, letting out his breath. This was his second favorite class next to government, but he was happy they were in a freebie day. He pulled out his supplies and prepared, wondering what kind of item he could make and sell.

* * *

once again...hehehehe. this chapter i Will totally admit is weak, but this is what happens when you start writing and lose your work or not writing down your ideas when you get them originally. just rereading where this is now and then knowing where it's at now...tyler just starts falling downhill and quick. but. that is then and this is now. things start picking up now :-)


	6. Treading with Trish

**Chapter 6**

"Talk to me."

Tyler glanced over at Reid, vaguely wondering if anyone at their school thought they were more than simply best friends. "Wait until the dorms."

The brisk walk was bitter against the wind, Tyler doing his best to hide his face in the neck of his jacket. More snow was on the way, and Tyler wasn't fond of the thought. With a few other students they walked into their dorm and headed towards their room, Reid taking out his keys. After they went in and settled down, Reid all too soon was looking at Tyler, saying, "Explain."

_Shit. I'm not ready yet. _Tyler quickly looked around the room, wondering if there was something he could look at to distract him while he spoke. His eyes landed on a Tool poster Reid had partially hiding in his closet, and Tyler knew Reid enjoyed looking at it whenever he was mixing alcohol and the power. His eyes wandered over the interlacing designs and the overall picture, checking out each feature of the faces and eyes. "It was the only choice I had left. I legitimately believed that you kicked me out for the night." Tyler shifted on his bed, crossing his legs and glancing back to the poster. "So I went home. You know how I can't be in a car for more than a few hours. Everything seemed fine, but I took too long leaving and my nightmares became reality." _I need alcohol for this. Shit._

"Nightmares? The ones that had you throwing up?"

Tyler glanced over and saw the straight concerned face Reid had on. He was listening and thinking, possibly drawing his own conclusions to what happened and how he could help Tyler out. "Yeah, those ones. They were the same thing. Lamps, a couple, some stores, some alleys, and him."

"Tyler... How far did he take you?"

Tyler looked down and shut his eyes, trying to keep his stomach calm as the images flashed across his mind once again. "He almost broke the line. He almost made me his forever." He couldn't help but bring his knees up, hiding his face into his legs and covering his head with his arms. He was a distressed ball, but he didn't care.

He felt Reid place an arm around his back and slightly flinched, but he was thankful when Reid ignored it. He slowly brought his arms down and drew his head out of his weak shell, looking at Reid. "I'm sorry he made you go that far. Trust me, the first time is always the hardest. If you keep me around, you hopefully will never have to go through that again."

Even though Reid couldn't see it very well, the tiniest of grins began to form on his face. "Thanks for being here. Caleb and Pogue are still coming over, aren't they? Do I have to tell them everything?"

Reid removed his arm, but stayed next to Tyler. "They're still coming over, but you don't have to tell them everything. I sure as hell didn't. Just mention what you feel is scary, but not horribly detailed and partially vague. As long as it isn't a huge problem, they'll stay out of it."

Tyler looked up and nodded, Reid standing up. "Want a shot? That'll make you feel better, and we can get the rest of the night figured out." Tyler nodded and stood up, heading towards Reid's secret stash.

~~/~~

Tyler laid on his bed, trying to stay awake. He was by himself for the moment, while Reid took a shower until Pogue and Caleb showed up. His mind drifted towards the picture he had drawn earlier, still slightly unsettled about it. It had been of a shadowed figure, an arm reaching straight out, hand positioned in a grabbing manner at his face. While he had been drawing it, he saw that he was tracing the lines another hand left him to draw, and yet, his hand felt free of any pressure. He sighed, impatient for Caleb and Pogue to arrive. The room was slowly dimming, and he didn't know how much longer he could hold on for.

He opened his eyes, a haze of maroon lines overcoming part of his vision. He tried blinking it away, but every time he blinked, the maroon intensified. He felt much lighter on the bed, a wave of dizziness consuming his body before fading. He closed his eyes, panting and trying to not submit to his body's wants. He knew it was only going to get worse, but Reid would take care of him. He would survive the discussion again, then sleep until school.

The maroon came back in trails, slowly gliding like blood across his eyeballs. This was the trip his powers drew him into when he was dangerously exhausted, mentally. He tensed, trying to force his powers to back off. He stared at the ceiling, which seemed to be breathing along with him. It seemed as if a wave was constantly rolling through the tiles in a subtle but captivating motion. He stared at it, just letting his body be, momentarily forgetting about watching his powers. The waves intensified, more crashing into each other and finally building up to a large roll, colliding above Tyler. He flinched, waiting for ceiling tiles to hit him, but nothing did. He felt his powers pulsing against the back of his mind, slowly working its way forward until Tyler couldn't deny it anymore.

He tried to suppress his powers once more, but his limbs felt disconnected and his torso was heavier than he was used to. _I need to get out of this trip soon. It's going to knock me out before this night even gets started. _He managed to lift his hands and cover his eyes with his palms, elbows up in the air as he was on his back, struggling to control himself. He thought he heard the door open, but he was stone still on his bed. He didn't care about anything besides not blowing up, releasing all this momentum onto some poor soul.

"Tyler? You awake over there?"

He wanted to nod, give some sort of response to Reid, but all of his concentration was focused on his powers and not drifting away from the bed. "How soon?" he whispered, hoping Reid understood the question. His voice was light but strained, Tyler even knowing that he didn't sound right.

"Until what? Tyler, what's going on?"

Tyler couldn't help the slight grin that crept across his face. "Power trippin'. With Trish. You named her."

"Shit. Well, if you're talking about Caleb and Pogue, I don't know when they'll be here. How long has she been holding your hand?"

"Just your shower," he whispered, his mind beginning to feel detached from his body. It was slightly disconcerting, but he was beginning to see the enjoyment of not being attached to reality.

"Tyler, stay with me, come on pal. You want another shot? Do you need to move around or something?"

"No." Tyler felt his arms fall to the side, too heavy to hold up anymore. He heard Reid come closer, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Can you open your eyes and let me see them?"

_Why would I want to do such a thing? _"Possibly not..."

"Try for me, Tyler. I need to see how bad the trip is."

Tyler took in a deep breath and slowly let it out, his power pulsing in beat with his heart. He opened his eyes, Reid's form having a fuzzy outline, but prominent details, the room behind him seeming as if it was another layer, distant and smeared. "How bad?" he whispered, looking around the room at how everything faded into everything else. He inhaled sharply, the light snaking its way across the ceiling and fading into smoky lines, gently tapping the edges of the wall and cascading down. "My god... It's beautiful."

"That's what we all say, but think of how you're going to feel if you don't try to get out of this now. Hold onto my hands, and I want you to challenge me in how tight of a grip you have."

Tyler couldn't tear his eyes away from the ceiling light, another small grin overcoming his face. "A lot..." he mumbled, his head falling and looking behind Reid, landing on the Tool poster. The lines stretched towards him, all eyes watching him. He forgot about breathing as his main focus turned towards the poster, the power beginning to radiate off of his body. He felt something grab his shoulder, causing him to yell in surprise and attack with his power. He struggled to focus on what was happening around him as a pressure consumed his chest, slowly spreading throughout. "Reid!" he said, bringing his eyes to his friend hunched over above him.

"Tyler... Show me how much stronger your power is than mine."

He didn't know if it was because of the trip or not, but Tyler could see faint red bands of power around Reid's wrist, the red coming from Tyler. There was a faint blue over Tyler's chest, attempting to hold back Tyler's power as bits of the cover randomly spiked towards Reid. Reid had his eyes shut tight, using his power to drain Tyler's. "Reid, no."

Tyler could tell his power was focusing on attacking Reid, but all he could do was lie on his bed and let it happen. Reid shook from the strain, but the trip was beginning to fade. The room was not as disoriented, Reid's figure more solid. "You're doing good Tyler. Actually push against my power until you're better or I'm going to suck it all from you."

Tyler lifted his arms and grabbed Reid's wrists, the light red bands sweeping up Reid's arms as he gasped, falling more over Tyler. "Stop it. You're going to hurt yourself." A cold chill ran over Tyler, his vision straightening out even more as Reid continued. Finally Tyler knew when he was in control again and he was able to remove his hands from Reid's arms, Reid sitting straighter, a weak grin on his face.

"How're you feeling?"

Tyler looked around the room, hearing a knock on the door. "Are you serious?" Reid asked, looking at the door before slowly standing up, Tyler seeing the obvious exhaustion in Reid's stance. He himself felt more awake and aware of his surroundings, his vision steady as he saw Caleb and Pogue in the doorway.

The two came into the room and grabbed the extra chairs, sitting next to the beds. Tyler simply looked at the two, slightly out of it from the sudden burst of normalcy. Reid on the other hand looked exhausted and slightly in pain. He sat down and they looked to Tyler, Caleb asking, "So? What's going on? Why did you try running away from us yesterday?"

Tyler sighed, slightly disgusted with the fact that he was telling them so soon. _They'll be out of my hair now about this. I just have to remain calm and try to be as smooth as possible. _"I've been stressed lately and haven't been sleeping well. You've all seen my dad get pissed at me?" Everyone nodded, Tyler glancing quickly around the group before settling his sight on a corner of Reid's bed. "He got mad at me again over break, and it hurt worse than normal. I took my stress from my father and school out on Reid the other night and left, deciding to stay at my parent's house.

"I thought it wouldn't be a problem, but my dad came home early and was pissed that I had stayed the night without asking." Tyler paused, the giggling resounding in his ears. He tried not to shift or move his hands, giving away that he was hiding something worse. He shoved the image of his father's grin to the back of his mind, before continuing, "He roughed me up a bit, worse than I'd expect, so I panicked and came back to the dorms. I didn't think he would scare me that bad, but I left because of the shock and pain."

He slowly released the air he was holding in, barely able to hold the fear of the truth inside. Even though it was supposed to be a cover story, it was a very good outline of what actually happened. "How did he rough you up?" Pogue asked.

Tyler peeked up, seeing that Pogue was carefully examining him. "He shoved me around the room a bit, punching or kicking if he could, yelling about how miserable of a kid I was."

_"You're one of the best, Ty-Ty. Simply more enjoyable than anyone else. Please, do come home more often and skip school more often."_

Tyler couldn't help but release a small shudder, his breath catching in his throat. "Are you sure that's all he said or did?" Caleb asked, Tyler slowly bringing his hand down from his eyes, wondering when he had brought it up.

"Yeah. Sorry, I just remembered how painful one of the kicks was. Are you happy now? I kind of wanted to try sleeping."

Tyler hoped that Caleb and Pogue caught that he was done talking about what happened, Caleb watching him for a moment longer before simply nodding his head. "I'll accept that for now, but I don't want you to go home again anytime soon, and if you do, I want one of us to accompany you or you can stay at one of our places until things calm down with your dad."

Tyler let out a slight grin, mostly to hide the short burst of laughter that wanted to escape. "Thanks Caleb, I'll keep that in mind."

The two nodded and turned, leaving the room. Tyler let out the rest of his short laughter, shaking his head. "I can't believe that he thinks one of you guys can protect me from my dad." _I'm his favorite. He can wait as long as he needs to, because he knows I'll always be back. _

"Well, we can try. I think he's going a little over the top, but you closed the conversation pretty tightly, obviously not wanting to go any deeper. That was a good story though. They'll go with it for now."

_It was just a cover story... _"Thanks. I'm glad that's done with. Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to attempt to take a nap to get back in order. You might wanna take one too."

Reid gave a weak grin and shook his head. "We'll see. You pass out first. I'm sure you'll sleep fine."

~~/~~

Tyler was grabbed aggressively, jarring him awake. _"You were lying to us Tyler,"_ he realized Caleb was saying, fury thick. _"Why would you lie to your Brothers?"_

Barely comprehending what was happening, Tyler was pulled from the bed and thrown onto the ground. He lifted his head up and saw Pogue shoving Reid back_. "Get the fuck out! You don't deserve to do this!"_ Reid came for Pogue but Pogue was quicker and punched Reid across the face, sending the blonde sprawling onto the floor.

Caleb crossed his arms and looked back at Tyler, a smirk on his face before the anger consumed it again. _"We trusted you. It turns out you're more like Reid than we expected. You're better than that!"_

Tyler stared at Reid, before looking back at the two and dropping his head back onto the floor. _"What's going on? What are you two talking about?"_

Pogue laughed. _"Don't try to play us, Tyler. The game is over. So, tell us the truth about your father or else you'll be prodded."_

_"I told you guys. He's a demented bastard!"_ Tyler's vision and mind finished straightening out, and as he tried to push himself off the ground, he felt Pogue's foot collide with his head. He felt something wrapped around his mouth, barely muting his cry of agony. He lay still on the ground, stunned as the pain engulfed his head. _Reid..._

_"So, since you're to remain silent from here on out, this is your punishment for taking on Reid's traits. We don't need two of him in this Covenant, and we need to eliminate whatever chances arise."_

Tyler opened his eyes and watched Caleb lift his hand, saying, _"Learn to respect your elders. They do not approve when you make pitiful excuses based on the premises of lying."_ Caleb whipped him with the power, Pogue kicking his lower back. Tyler tried screaming but no sound escaped, Caleb grinning and smacking him again. _"You're our Brother, Tyler. We love you. You've grown up, and you're brilliant. But, you will throw it all away if you continue hanging out with him like you do now. And that can't be."_

Tyler was panting, staring at the two, knowing these weren't his Brothers. He saw the maniacal gleam in their eyes, their posture too relaxed as if they had done this before. _I know they wouldn't change and treat us like this, no matter how much we fight. They don't need to know everything, and there's no way that Reid would tell them, or even of them talking to my father about it. These aren't my Brothers._

Caleb's eyes went black, whipping his power across Tyler's body. Tyler jerked from the sting, another strip lashing across his arm. He felt two more land on his body, Tyler's mouth wide as no sound escaped. In his own mind his voice was taking up most of his thoughts, the scream audible. _Reid! God, get up Reid! Please! Get them off of me! _He looked over and saw Caleb and Pogue standing side by side, wearing matching grins.

They took a few steps closer to him, both picking him up and shoving him back on the bed. He was wide eyed with fear, unable to move or speak. _"How did your father rough you up again?"_ One of Caleb's hands slid towards Tyler's throat, gripping tight enough. _"Was it anything like this?"_

Tyler shook with fear, Pogue's spare hand sliding towards Tyler's hips, steadily adding pressure. _"Or was it like this?"_

_No!_ Tyler squirmed and began fighting against the two, trying to get away. _Reid! Reid! Get them off! _He was beginning to get dizzy from his head and whatever sparks of arousal they had already sent. He had to continue fighting though, or at least until Reid was able to stand up. The two above him began chuckling in unison, Caleb sliding over to the side, Pogue getting on top of Tyler. Caleb had a firm grip on his shoulders, Pogue's hands resting on Tyler's hips. Tyler shook his head, barely holding his tears back.

_"Now we can be more physical, Baby Boy. Now, you violated a Covenant law. This is first punishment."_ Tyler let out a silent gasp, his back partially arching off of the bed as Pogue sent a small trickle of power throughout his hips. Tyler looked back at Pogue, a dark grin on his face. _"You are resisting our help and separating this group more than it ever has been before. You and Reid cannot fairly be on the same side. Reid's antics are enough for one person. You don't need to pick up on them as well."_

A little bit more pressure was added to the spot, a little stronger piece of the power escaping as well. Tyler shuddered, feeling uncomfortable_. "When you feel that you are ready to trust us again, please, let us know."_

Pogue began grinding against Tyler, sending his power into Tyler's hips while massaging them tenderly. Tyler was glad he couldn't be heard, because he knew he'd be disgusted with himself. _Help! Come on Reid! _He felt himself hardening, and couldn't bear to open his eyes.

_"What's the matter, Ty-Ty? Can't you enjoy this?" _

Tyler knew that voice. He opened his eyes and saw his father above him, a sadistic grin spreading across his face. He felt a jerk and felt like he had been slammed into a wall. He put a hand up to his head and blinked a few times, trying to make sense of where he was. He came to focus on Reid and that they were in their dorm room, shudders encasing him. He stared at Reid, saying, "I can't do this anymore."

Reid only looked down at him, unsure of what to say.

* * *

yay :) here's another one. if any reader has actually tripped, Maybe they've come to the same conclusion that it's pretty hard to describe. I've only been able to describe the emotions as epic. note, not actions or thoughts. I've done some stupid things, as well as friends. but, hopefully here's just a little insight of what it can be like... as always, please let me know what you think. I'm trying to post more from my kindle but it's slightly obnoxious. And as for the last chapter, resin, I'm thinking of like resin from weed. It's sticky, messy, significantly meaning that it's the waste of a product. That's kind of what Tyler is feeling like, just black, dirty, used, etc. Or, you can look at it like he's becoming entrapped in what has become of his life, and it's solidifying into some beautiful tragedy, like a bug in amber... hehehe. Yes. Something like that.


	7. Black Sheep Never Sleep

**Chapter 7**

"Tyler, you're avoiding the question again."

Tyler looked up at Reid from across the table, Caleb and Pogue gone for the moment. "This isn't the time nor place to discuss something like this."

"I don't care. Even if I get a short answer, that'll suffice."

Tyler growled, looked over his shoulder and saw Caleb and Pogue coming back. "Fine. We'll have a talk after this and you better open up about your old dreams as well."

Reid looked at Tyler, realizing he had no time to debate this out. He glanced and judged how far away Pogue and Caleb were, and looked back at Tyler, nodding his head at the last second. Tyler let his breath out, relieved that Reid agreed. It had been a week since his last nightmare, but Tyler hadn't been able to get more than three hours of sleep a night. He was once again caught up on his homework and exhausted from everything. The previous night had been taxing on the two friends, Tyler almost walking out. Reid had made him stay though and instead he had left for a few hours, sneaking back in when Tyler had managed to fall asleep.

Tyler didn't pay too much attention to the rest of the conversations, distant in his own thoughts and managing his emotions. He still panicked if Caleb and Pogue caught him by surprise, but he was quicker at calming down now than he had been. Reid still didn't know what the last dream consisted of, and Tyler shied away from alcohol, afraid that he wouldn't be able to wake up from a nightmare again, even though Reid tried his best to tell him that alcohol impairs a person's sleep and their dreaming stages, so he most likely wouldn't get any nightmares. _By that logic then, the last time I drank and had a nightmare was a complete fluke. It shouldn't happen again...in theory._

"Class time, Tyler," Reid said, pulling Tyler back to reality. Reid smoothly pulled Tyler up and handed him his backpack. "Three more periods, and then we're done."

Tyler nodded, sliding his backpack on and walking amongst his fellow classmates, wondering if any others had to deal with problems like this at seventeen. His and Reid's problems both began at thirteen, but they progressed very differently. Tyler smoothly sat down in his chair, looking at their math teacher. He took his homework out and lost focus around him, knowing Reid would grab the paper if Tyler wasn't paying attention.

The class period passed quickly, Reid soon guiding him to government. _Shit, now I really have to pay attention. Mr. Bardion isn't going to tolerate me falling asleep in class again. The Dean will find out, then most likely Caleb and my parents. _Tyler gave it his best, but he became engrossed periodically with how the words on the board swayed and wiggled while in place. He tilted his head to the side, trying to get his vision to straighten out. "Mr. Simms, are you confused with what I'm lecturing about?"

Tyler snapped his head up, Reid nudging him in the side. "Ah, no Sir, sorry. I was trying to read the board."

Mr. Bardion looked at him a moment longer before continuing, Tyler scribbling down what he thought was on the board. He realized he was shaking, but he was okay with it. It helped keep him awake and even though it made writing harder, the words weren't trying to move across the page. Reid took more notes than he did, but Tyler would try to copy them later and make sense of what was being taught. Tyler was slowly shutting down by the end of the period, able to gather some energy for his pottery class. "How much longer can you handle being like this? It's only been a week," Reid said outside Tyler's classroom.

"All I need to do is get through this period, we'll talk, I'll take a nap, and we'll carry on as always."

"No arguments though tonight. That could be why you're more exhausted today than normal as well. You used extra energy that you were trying to save."

_Of course... _"Whatever, man. See you after school."

Tyler went into his class and sat down, trying to regain his posture. He had to trim today, and that was going to require a lot more strength and concentration than he had managed to skate by with so far. As long as he didn't ruin any of his pieces, that was all that mattered. He skated through the class with minor difficulties, managing to procrastinate as much as possible. When the end of the class period came, he carefully put his projects away, almost panicking when one slipped from his grip, Tyler catching it and staying still, barely any extra dust falling off of the small, delicate bowl.

_This is not a good sign with how the rest of the day is going to turn out. _He placed the bowl back on the shelf and grabbed his stuff, soon meeting with Reid by the exit of the building. They walked in silence, Tyler thinking of how he was going to get Reid to talk as well. If he was going to tell Reid about his nightmare with Caleb and Pogue, he needed to be reassured that Reid has had dreams about them as well. He was open enough about his uncle...other than that though, Tyler couldn't recall of any other nightmares that Reid had.

Tyler opened the door and set his backpack down, heading towards his closet to find a new outfit. "Should I just start explaining so you don't have to wait?" he asked, deciding it was only going to get worse from here.

"If it moves things along, go ahead."

Tyler stayed silent as he picked an outfit out and sat on his bed when he finished changing, shaking his head. "Is there anywhere I should start?"

Reid sat on his bed across from Tyler, looking more comfortable in his dark green warm ups and a white t-shirt. "Start with what happened last week, and we'll go from there. Explain at any time why I have to be fair and explain the rest of my dreams as well?"

Tyler fiddled with the drawstring on the pair of warm ups he was wearing, but unlike Reid he had put his jacket on as well. He took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. _No extravagant details. Only normal, sufficient, efficient details. I got this. _"Last week, my nightmare wasn't like the normal ones. I remember that you would have nightmares about your uncle, and you sometimes said 'other things.' Did those 'other things' consist of Caleb and Pogue?"

Reid shifted, looking down to the side. He was quiet, Tyler wondering what he going to say. "A few yeah, but they weren't terrible. I've seen how you flinch around the two."

_Fantastic... _It was Tyler's turn to be silent, and knew it was going to take hours to get this over with if he didn't spit it out. Hopefully Reid would follow suit and be speedy as well. "So then at least you kind of understand. They were involved in a dream with my father."

"And how far down the line do the dreams with your father go?"

"Assuming the line of insanity, it's the breaking point." Tyler couldn't hide the shudder that spread from his spine throughout his body. The feeling of his father's tongue in his mouth made him gag, Tyler doubling over and resisting the urge to puke. He took calming breaths, suddenly feeling the weight of Reid next to him.

"Take your time."

"Not helping." Tyler took a few more breaths, finally saying, "Does that answer your question?"

"Pretty much... So those are your normal father dreams and Caleb and Pogue were involved in the most recent. What happened then?"

Tyler shuddered. "I was almost relieved that it wasn't a dream with my father, but at the last second before I started fading away, my father was there on top of me." He had to keep this break quick. It was getting harder to focus on the matter at hand and not be swept away in the tide of despair and regret. He couldn't reflect on too much of this. "You woke me up soon after that."

Reid was silent for a moment, finally asking, "Do your dreams ever coincide with reality?"

Another shudder escaped through Tyler, his grip on his arms not strong enough to stop the shiver from ruining the hug. "Didn't yours ever?"

Reid was silent for a moment, and then gave a short laugh. "Yeah, I guess they sometimes did."

"Were they realistic or did they have the unbelievable dreamy aspect to them?"

"They were realistic enough... A lot of the nightmares were memories, but some had an unbelievable aspect to them. When you're consumed by that much fear though, anything seems real." Tyler was watching Reid, seeing his eyes glaze over as he tried to bury the past. Reid blinked and looked at Tyler, his eyebrows drawing together. "You're avoiding the question."

"No, I'm simply making it fair. The nightmares have...the realistic touch to them. I honestly don't know how I call your name. I'm only ever thinking it. I sometimes have a hard time deciphering between what's reality and what isn't."

"You aren't very loud, but you give off cues that you're in a nightmare before you start asking me to wake you up. Why do you think that you haven't gotten over your jumpiness of Caleb and Pogue yet?"

Tyler honestly didn't know how to answer that question. "It could be because they've never hit me, or threatened me before. You receive threats fairly often, and Caleb has hit you before, even though it's been awhile. So, you're used to it. I've never imagined that they would ever come after me for anything, so I freaked."

"And your father? How soon do you think you'll be seeing him again?"

Tyler shook his head. "Not for awhile, I hope. I'm okay until I see something that reminds me of him. Is it the same with your uncle?"

Reid was silent for a moment. "Yeah," he responded softly. "It took me awhile to not obviously jump when I saw him, but he had already helped train me with that. After I heard my dad argue with him, it was easier to loosen up and not flinch so much."

Tyler tried to imagine his father teaching him to not flinch. He only shuddered, feeling his father's fingers caressing his neck.

"How are you holding up?"

The sincerity in Reid's voice caused Tyler to sigh. It was getting harder still. "Just keep asking the questions."

"How often does your father intrude in your space?"

"Heh. Every opportunity he could, it seemed. You know about the worst of the times, from saving me, but when he just wanted to scare or push me around, he made sure my mom was always off doing something else." Raging make out sessions, pressed against his bed, the softer flesh of his father pressed hard against his own taut body. From mere minutes to bordering an hour, his father could never have enough. "Always... Always...could never satisfy."

"Don't say that. You don't need to satisfy that piece of shit. You never came out of there feeling satisfied, and that's what matters. You aren't crazy, or demented, or anything!"

"Just keep asking..." _It's getting harder to block the memories. I'm not going to be able to sleep tonight. I can't. I feel like he's around me, right now. Pulling me away from reality, intoxicating my mind with the fear he possesses. I'm gonna freak. _

"Did he ever find any secret spots on you?"

A flash of heat began at his hip before it raged through his body, blatantly shaking now. "I didn't know it existed, honestly. He found it though, first in the dream, and then in reality. Now... He knows what it does, how I react. There's no stopping him from reaching his desires."

"Tyler, look at me. Now."

He couldn't though. His face was buried in his knees, his hands gripping his hair tight. He couldn't relax, or move at all. He was trying his hardest not to freak out, wanting to get the imaginary hands grabbing his shoulders off of him. The imaginary hands were grasping his shoulders, but were slowly moving around the muscles in a massaging manner. He let out a cry, fearful of the stress that was consuming his body right now.

"Tyler!"

Another set of hands grabbed his own, pulling them to the side aggressively, causing Tyler to raise his eyes just barely enough to meet Reid's. They were black, and Tyler was frozen in place as soon as he made contact. He was panting, muscles tight as he didn't know whether he should run or not. His legs had little spasms, wanting to escape this pressure and forget that any of it ever happened. He was locked on Reid's eyes though, captivated by the black vortex. A whimper escaped from him, Reid's intense glare faltering a little.

"Tyler, you need to stay here with me. We can stop the questioning. Ask me whatever you want if you feel it's fair. It was the original agreement, after all."

Tyler simply stared at Reid, shaking, unable to think of anything off the top of his head. "How close to insanity have you reached?"

He slowly released Tyler's hands, eyes still black, and sat down on the floor in front of Tyler. "It took a long while for me to even wonder if there was a breaking point. He was skilled at it. Whatever scars or marks you saw was remnants from weeks of healing. He knows how to make his mark. I almost reached insanity two years ago, over spring break, but he stopped right beforehand."

Tyler noticed that Reid's eyes had turned back to blue, and his body was surprisingly relaxed as he barely held his upper body up, elbows propped on his knees. "How long did it take your parents to finally catch on after he blatantly started beating you?"

"From the time I was thirteen until just this past winter. I didn't tell you the full Christmas special that happened this year."

Tyler stared at Reid. "Why? I'm your best friend, Reid. You told me he kissed you under the mistletoe and you freaked, so you lit him on fire. He yelled, and your dad came in as he punched you, calling you names. There was more than that?"

"Yeah... He occasionally was kissing or trying to make out with me under all the mistletoe that my mom hung. The day after Christmas, at my parent's party he locked us in my room and made out with me for god knows how long." Reid shuddered, closing his eyes for a moment before continuing. "Over one of our linen closet upstairs, is mistletoe. For one last time, he tried kissing me, but bit my lip instead. I finally freaked, shoved him away, calling him names. My dad came around the corner and he punched me straight down into the stairs, and tried kicking me down. Luckily my dad doesn't understand all of the names he has for me."

"And there was the argument."

"Yeah. Dad ripped him a new one, calling him a vile, disgraceful creature and whatnot. It was nice, hearing it come from his mouth for once, and not his brother's."

"Adopted brother too," Tyler said, voice not any more emotional than Reid's. "Reid, how the fuck did we end up with lives such as ours? And here we are, again, helping each other out."

Tyler glanced at Reid and saw the blonde haired, blue eyed beauty with a soft smirk on his face. "And you know what? I wouldn't have it any way. I'm glad you're my brother, through and through. We'll work through these nightmares somehow, and it'll get better soon. You only have to sleep more often, and allow me to help you with the nightmares. I opened up enough with you, and now you have to do the same with me. If you want to continue on with the questions, then let's, otherwise I'm ready to play some drinking games to cheer the fuck up."

Tyler couldn't help but laugh, wiping his eyes to double check for any accidental tears. "If there's anything left to discuss, we'll talk about it later. Otherwise, a few drinks could never hurt. Shall we pick a movie, card, or money game?"

Reid smirked and stood up, pulling Tyler up in front of him. Tyler cautiously looked at Reid's eyes, trying to figure out what he was up to now. Without warning, he pulled Tyler into a hug, Tyler awkwardly returning it. "Thanks for being in my life."

Tyler relaxed, grinning. "Thanks for being in mine as well, bro."

Reid pulled away and went into his closet, tossing some clothes around as he looked for something. Tyler sat down on his bed, taking in a deep breath and slowly letting it out. When he looked back up, Reid was grinning as he held two bottles of rum, both three-quarters full. "I think our friendship deserves some celebrating. We'll continue this conversation, mind you. But now we can work on making this better."

"Especially since we have two weeks before winter break, and we have to go home again."

Reid handed a bottle to Tyler, taking off the cap to his own. "We'll get that figured out later. If anything, you can stay at my place. My parent's love you too much to even think about saying no."

Tyler tried to hide the small grin forming on his face as he spun the cap to his own bottle off, holding it up. "Cheers to family?"

Reid chuckled as he tapped the top of the bottle to Tyler's, replying, "Cheers to family."

* * *

Yay! Here's another one. No, there's no slash involved in this story at all... It's just serious bromance type of deal. It's kind of obvious that it's a girl writing, but hey, i dont see why guys can't have deep, emotional conversations like girls can. Sometimes, it's truly the best way to heal, especially after Tyler and Reid have been forced to stay quiet for years on end. Since they're constantly in a boarding school, at least the time away from home is nice. Gives them time to heal and get back on track with a normal life. And once again, I kind of tie in my story Darkness with this one. Granted, i dont think there's going to be any Chase in this story, but i really liked the whole back story of Reid that i made. Idk. I'd have to rewrite that story and what not to make it truly fit in with this, and that's not gonna happen. Anywho, i hope this chapter is enjoyable, and i dont do many shout outs, but the two who are reviewing (Guest, idk who you are, but you're amazing for reviewing every chapter, thank you, and KorboeWolf2, I hope you continue to enjoy) so, if you two are at least enjoying, i have a lot more motivation to continue posting and writing. It's a long one going so far :D i hope that's not a problem and you dont fade out on me... Much love and appreciation, until next time :)


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